Pashmina
What is Difference between Cashmere and Pashmina?
Cashmere and Pashmina are words used for same type of wool. Pashmina is thought to be the original word used in Asia specially in India , China, Tibet, Pakistan and Nepal. In these countries pashmina is more popular word than cashmere. In past years Pashmina has been marketed in some countries like U.S, U.K and others as Cashmere. Pashmina is also getting popular in other European countries. Few sources treat Cashmere as more pure than pashmina, in reality there is no difference between pashmina and cashmere. Both refer to same type of wool.
Pashmina goats are found only in very high altitude areas. Pashmina is the fine undercoat grown by these animals to save them from very low winter temperature in these high altitude areas. Goats shed pashmina in spring, which is combed off and collected. This is then processed to produce Cashmere or Pashmina yarn. Pure Cashmere is very soft and very warm wool. Tibetan Cashmere is considered the best in world due to its long fiber. This type of cashmere wool also can be found in Mongolia. With increasing awareness about cashmere, new areas are emerging which also claim to produce a very high quality of pure cashmere or pashmina.
Cashmere and Pashmina are words used for same type of wool. Pashmina is thought to be the original word used in Asia specially in India , China, Tibet, Pakistan and Nepal. In these countries pashmina is more popular word than cashmere. In past years Pashmina has been marketed in some countries like U.S, U.K and others as Cashmere. Pashmina is also getting popular in other European countries. Few sources treat Cashmere as more pure than pashmina, in reality there is no difference between pashmina and cashmere. Both refer to same type of wool.
Pashmina goats are found only in very high altitude areas. Pashmina is the fine undercoat grown by these animals to save them from very low winter temperature in these high altitude areas. Goats shed pashmina in spring, which is combed off and collected. This is then processed to produce Cashmere or Pashmina yarn. Pure Cashmere is very soft and very warm wool. Tibetan Cashmere is considered the best in world due to its long fiber. This type of cashmere wool also can be found in Mongolia. With increasing awareness about cashmere, new areas are emerging which also claim to produce a very high quality of pure cashmere or pashmina.
The natural fiber obtained from the Cashmere goat, native to the Himalayan region of China and India. The fleece of this goat has long, straight, coarse outer hair of little value; but the small quantity of underhair, or down, is made into luxuriously soft woollike yarns with a characteristic highly napped finish. This fine cashmere fiber is obtained by frequent combings during the shedding season. A microscopic examination reveals that cashmere is a much finer fiber than mohair or wool fiber obtained from sheep. The scales being less distinct and farther apart, the fiber appears to be made of telescoped sections.