The pashminas sold in the store are made in Srinagar, Kashmir. I can proudly tell my customers that the treatment reserved for goats and the manufacturing conditions are part of very serious specifications.
The goats are of the capra hircus breed also called Changthangi or Changra. They are raised for their precious hair (the famous cashmere) in the regions of the Himalayas at an altitude of more than 4500 m; to protect themselves from extreme winter temperatures (-40 to -50°C) they produce a dense and very fine undercoat, the famous pashmina cashmere.
When summer arrives with rising temperatures, moulting occurs. The hair is collected by breeders using a comb.
The pashmina stoles that I am offering you will have required around ten operations between harvesting the wool, sorting it, washing it and then the different operations to obtain a thread which will be put into a spool.
All our pashminas are hand-woven with the Bulbul or diamond or bird's eye pattern: this is the traditional pattern emblematic of real pashmina. Difficult to execute, this pattern is reserved for the most experienced weavers: it will take between 3 and 5 days of work to produce a stole.
The carding and spinning of our pashminas are carried out mechanically.
Pashminas made entirely by hand from carding to weaving can take several weeks and require rare know-how and are therefore extremely expensive.