The Ethical Cashmere Blog

I should begin by emphasising that the weave of cashmere would not be enough to compensate for inferior quality of the fibre itself. A high quality, naturally soft-bred cashmere wool woven for sturdiness would still feel softer than a mixed-bred, lower grade wool woven for maximum softness. 

That said, all other things being equal, what's the difference? 

These tips are intended more to help the online shopper appreciate the colour behaviour of cashmere that we consider a 'bonus', since it is responsible for cashmere's more luxurious appearance compared to other winter fabrics. 

So, what sorts of things influence your colour perception of cashmere?

“OH MY GOD!!” was my instinctive reaction when I touched the cashmere shawl. I had not expected it to be that soft.

Hanging out at Mr. Ghulam’s little store in Pokhara, at first I enjoyed merely looking at the colourful textiles neatly stacking the shelves.

You see, I thought I knew cashmere. There was a phase when it was fashionable in Malaysia; there was ‘pashmina’ (another name for cashmere) everywhere. Nice wide shawls, usually with some kind of paisley pattern. They were cheap, sometimes going for lower than $10.

“It’s very nice…” Nuraini said, looking at the photo I had sent.

“Yea… it’s a beautiful place…!” I murmured quietly. It was a view of the Kashmiri Himalayas, mostly bare of snow, but with the tops still lathered with white. “Where the bridge is, this is Dursuma. This is just after Wayul-"

“Wayul? Is that like, a region? or village?”

During the 90s, the situation in Kashmir became worse, so my dad decided to move out because there were no tourists coming. So he didn't have any work as a guide. And a second thing, as a carpet weaver, he also didn't have a lot of work, because the situation was getting really bad in Kashmir at the time.

Welcome to Ethical Cashmere, online store for the original Himalayan cashmere craft! Do stay a little while, browse around the shop, and on our blog read the stories of cashmere and Kashmir, of Nepal, of Sumi's family and their weavers - the people behind Ethical Cashmere.