A Bit
about Cashmere
Cashmere began as the Fabric of
Kings. However, this incredibly soft fiber
transcends all groups of people, and is
available in many styles and garments from
classic sweaters to casual socks. Fashion
designers are largely responsible for
alleviating the stuffy, old money image that
cashmere was associated with for years. Cashmere
now transcends all groups of people due to its
fashion, style and affordability. The more elite
knitwear of yesteryear has been melded to blend
with the classics and styles of today.
Some interesting facts of cashmere include the
following: A goat needs four years to grow
adequate hair for just one sweater. The diameter
of the cashmere yarns must be less than 19
microns in order to be categorized as cashmere.
(Compare this to human hair that has a diameter
of 75 microns.) Cashmere is considered
approximately eight times as warm as sheep's
wool. Also cashmere absorbs water faster than
wool.
History of Cashmere: Cashmere gets it name
because it originates from the Kashmir province
of India. This is the region where cashmere
products were first noticed by the Europeans in
the early 1800s.
Cashmere is thought to have originated from the
soft down undercoat of the Asiatic goat (known
as Capra hircus laniger), but cashmere fibers
now come from 68 breeds of goats and exist in 12
countries. The classification "cashmere" is a
result of the fiber containing under 19 microns.
The countries that supply the world with the
most cashmere are China, Tibet and Mongolia.
Other countries such as Iran, Afghanistan, New
Zealand and Australia also contribute to the
cashmere industry.
The process of gathering the cashmere in China,
Tibet and Mongolia is achieved by combing the
fine underdown hairs of the goats during the
molting season in the spring. This separates the
fine cashmere hairs from the coarse outer hairs.
The process is somewhat different in
Afghanistan, Iran, New Zealand and Australia
since the animals are sheared.
Pashmina is the finest form of cashmere, at
12-14 microns thick. It originates from the same
type of goat, but it lives only in Kashmir and
Tibet at elevations of 12,000 to 14,000 feet.
The theory is that the most severe weather
creates the best inner coat. The word pashma
means inside. |
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