Pashmina- What is it exactly

Winter is here, making memories of summer seem distant. Just the thought of chill weather makes us want to wrap ourselves in warm layers. Presenting the perfect accessory to complete your winter wardrobe. The Pashmina Shawl!

The Fibre -

Deemed as an eternal gift from higher gods, the word Pashmina came from the Persian word pasima, which literally means "made from wool".

The Pashmina wool used for crafting our shawls comes from the semi-nomadic people known as the Changpa or Champa found mainly in the region of Changtang bordering Tibet and Ladakh. Unlike many other nomadic groups, the Changpa are not under pressure from settled farmers as most of the land they inhabit is too inhospitable for farming. Their livelihood depends on their animals, especially the Changra goats which are not raised for their meat but for their fibre (pashm).

The Pashmina fiber is the finest fiber amongst all goat hair. This fiber diameter is very low, between 12-15 microns while the commonly available commercial cashmere fiber is higher than 19 microns.

At around 14,000ft, the harsh surroundings of the Himalayan Mountains enable the Changra goats to produce the fiber of extraordinary fineness and warmth for protection from the unforgiving winters.

Pashmina wool is commonly referred to as Cashmere, it's no surprise that the word cashmere is a term that was given to the products of Kashmir by the European colonials.