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ALL ABOUT CASHMERE The fleece of Cashmere (or Kashmir) goats is made up of two distinct fibers: the coarse outer hair and the ultra-fine cashmere undercoat. The coarse outer hair is called guard hair. The fine undercoat (under 18.5 microns) is the source of Cashmere fiber for clothing. Cashmere, the fiber of kings, has long been one of the most exotic and rarest fibers to be found. This fiber is so luxurious that the Arc of the Covenant of the Old Testament was lined and curtained with it. Victorian England prized the famous "ring shawls" woven in India. They were made from cashmere shed by goats passing through the Indian State of Kashmir (hence the name) on their way to summer pasture in the mountains. These full-length shawls were so fine that the entire garment could easily pass through a lady's wedding band. Cashmere is soft, light weight, durable, very warm and makes wonderful feeling garments for wearing. Demand increased for sweaters, suits, coats and even socks as the wonderful feel or handle of the fiber combined with low bulk and high loft proved to be the softest, warmest, most comfortable garment that money could buy. The cashmere producing areas remained in the Himalayan region, extending east to China and west to Iran. Sixty percent of the world’s supply of cashmere is produced in China and the remainder from Turkey, Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, Kashmir, Australia and New Zealand.
Classification: Hair fiber Primary Uses: Men's and women's coats, jackets and blazers, skirts, hosiery, sweaters, gloves, shawls, scarves, blankets, mufflers, socks, caps and robes. General Characteristics: Luxuriously soft, with high napability and loft; provides natural light-weight insulation without bulk. Cashmere is extremely warm (in order to serve its original purpose of protecting goats from cold mountain temperatures). Fibers are highly adaptable and are easily constructed into fine or thick yarns, and light to heavy-weight fabrics. Appropriate for all climates. High moisture content allows insulation properties to change with the relative humidity in the air. Source: From the fine, soft undercoat of the Cashmere (Kashmir) or down goat. The straighter and coarser outer coat is called guard hair. Guard hairs are the longest, thickest hairs in a mammal's coat. They taper to a point and protect the undercoat from the elements. They are often waterproof and stick out above the rest of the coat. Geographic Origin: From the high plateaus of Asia. Significant supplier countries are: China, Mongolia and Tibet. Today, little is supplied by the Kashmir State of India, from which its name is derived. The cashmere products of this area first attracted the attention of Europeans in the early 1800's. Gathering Process: The specialty animal hair fibers are collected during molting seasons when the animals naturally shed their hairs. Goats molt during a several-week period in spring. In China and Mongolia, the down is removed by hand with a coarse comb. The animals are sheared in Iran, Afghanistan, New Zealand and Australia. Production: The coarse hairs and down hairs of the cashmere goat and camel are separated by a mechanical process known as dehairing. Annual Yield: Up to one pound of fiber per goat, with an average 4 to 6 ounces of underdown. Natural Colors: Gray, brown and white. Types of fiber: 1) Virgin -- New fiber that has not been processed in any way, or has been made into yarns, fabrics or garments for the first time. 2) Recycled -- Fibers reclaimed from scraps or fabrics that were previously woven or felted and may or may not have been used by the consumer. Garment Care: Dry clean wovens; knit goods may be handwashed. There are five primary steps to cashmere production:
Collection - Cashmere fibers are collected by either combing or shearing the animal during the molting season. Goats molt during a several week period in the spring. Sorting, scouring - Hand sorting for coarse hair takes place. After sorting, the fiber is washed to remove dirt, grease and any vegetable matter gathered in the collection process. Dehairing - The scoured material is then dehaired. This step removes vegetable matter, dandruff and the coarse outer guard hair. At the end of this process, the cashmere is ready to be spun into yarns for weaving or knitting--the 4th and 5th steps. How Posh is Pashmina? The popularity of products marketed as pashmina - an Indian word for cashmere - has skyrocketed in recent years; yet most consumers aren't sure what pashmina is. That's not surprising, as pashmina is not a labeling term recognized by the Wool Act and rules. Experts tell the FTC there is no pashmina fiber that is separate and distinct from the cashmere fiber. Some manufacturers use the term pashmina to describe an ultra fine cashmere fiber; others use the term to describe a blend of cashmere and silk. The FTC encourages manufacturers and sellers of products described as pashmina to explain to consumers, on a hangtag, for example, what they mean by the term. ** Paragraphs above were extracted from Fair Trade Commission website (http://www.ftc.gov). Many imported fabric suppliers and garment manufacturers misrepresent fiber content in order to unfairly trade on the image of luxury fibers, such as cashmere and camel hair. Crestjewel.com carries both cashmere and pashmina. For us, the term pashmina describes a finer cashmere fiber and it’s absolutely precious. Contact us if you are interested in pashmina. The shahbanotoosh cashmere fabric that we carry consists of 90% cashmere and 10% silk. It is woven using a special patented technique to match the softness and feel of the world's finest known natural fabric, Shahtoosh. Order a sample piece today to feel the difference of the softness between shahbanotoosh fabric and other cashmere fabrics available in the market. Cashmere fiber should be cared for like any other fine woolen. To keep them looking new, follow these steps:
Fibers used in winter garments Wool is a natural animal product, but its quality depends on the breed of the sheep and where and how it is reared. Superior quality wool is also graded on the basis of which part of the body the fleece is clipped. Fleece from the shoulders and sides of the sheep is said to be superior to that from the belly, breech and head. While Merino wool is one of the finest grades of wool from Merino sheep (the best variety comes from Australia), Lambs wool, as the name indicates, is the fine, soft wool from the first shearing of a lamb. Shetland wool is derived from the soft undercoat of Shetland sheep raised in Scotland. While Mohair is produced form the Angora goat, Cashmere is made from wool combed from the underbelly of Cashmere goat reared in the Himalayan regions of Tibet, Mongolia, Kashmir and Central Asia at elevations of 14,500 feet and above. It is very light and soft, but exceptionally warm. A cashmere shawl, it is said, requires wool from three goats. You must have noticed the word “worsted” wool and wondered what it meant. Well, wool fibers can be fabricated into worsted wool, made of longer fibers that give a smooth surface or woolens, which have shorter fibers and have a hairy surface. Wool has several positive characteristics. It is highly resilient or elastic and keeps the wearer really warm on account of the air enmeshed within the fibers and on the surface. It also ‘breathes’. Another advantage of wool is that its outer surface is water repellent, while its interior has a great affinity for moisture. As a result, wool absorbs water very slowly and in the form of water vapor and it can absorb considerable amount of moisture without the wearer feeling damp. Wool is also slow to ignite and because of its low static quality it also resists soil. Wool, however, has certain disadvantages. It tends to shrink and needs to be processed or blended to prevent shrinkage. It is attacked by moth larvae and has to be treated with a moth-repellent. Man-made acrylic fibers, on the other hand, are easy to wash and maintain and moth larvae do not feed on them. They can also be soft and fluffy like wool and they are not as expensive as good quality wool. However, even though acrylics too keep the wearer warm, they are not as resilient as wool and they do not breathe. Unless given an anti-static finish, one can also encounter the problem of static electricity with acrylics. |