Cashmere: a feel-good choice.
Wearing pure cashmere means enveloping yourself in a tender embrace because this very special natural fibre creates such a pleasant sensation when in contact with the human body, for clothes that are a delight to wear at any time of the year.

Softness.
Prime selection cashmere is amazingly soft to the touch, gentle on the skin, for maximum tolerance in wear.

Thermal insulation.
Pure cashmere has exceptional heat-regulating properties capable of maintaining a constant body temperature in any climate conditions.

Hygroscopic properties.
Cashmere has the natural ability to absorb water, and therefore sweat, creating a beneficial "transpiration" effect that keeps the body pleasantly dry.

Antistatic properties and hygiene.
Cashmere does not accumulate static electricity or form electromagnetic fields around the body, meaning that it does not attract dust from the environment, guaranteeing maximum hygiene.

The origins of a legendary product.
A unique and precious fibre, cashmere is also known as the golden fleece and the fibre of kings, gathered from the fabulous fleece of the exotic cashmere goat, a species that inhabits the solitary, inaccessible high plains of Asia, located mainly in China, Mongolia, Iran and Afghanistan, but also in Turkey, India and the ex-Soviet Union.
Due to the hostile weather and environmental conditions in these habitats, the goats have developed their distinctive fleece, with long, thick, relatively coarse surface hair, or guard hairs, and the highly-prized undercoat, or underdown, which is soft, smooth and extremely fine, capable of protecting the animal from the freezing cold.
It is this hidden part of the fleece, the underdown that is destined to become the finest cashmere.

Gathering techniques.
The fibre is gathered in the spring, moulting time for the goats, and the technique used will help determine the final quality of the cashmere.
The raw material that is to become the most prized cashmere is obtained by combing, a highly complex and delicate operation, in which the down is detached from the coat without damaging the fibres.
Combing one goat can yield from 200 to 300 grams of down, a quantity that is further reduced after sorting and refining, making the material even more difficult to source and part of what makes quality cashmere so precious.

From the edge of the world, quality without borders.
Cashmere goats are divided into a number of distinct breeds, according to differences in climate, feeding and rearing methods, and the quality of the fibre also varies with the breed.
Of all the breeds, the Chinese ones provide the best fleece and the rearing areas, with their particularly harsh and inhospitable climate, seem on the very edge of the world. Paradoxically, the harsher and the more hostile the environmental conditions, the softer, warmer and more prized is the cashmere produced.
Inner Mongolia, in north-eastern China, is the area that produces the highest quality cashmere, unequalled for its fineness, softness and the length of its fibres.
This why, with our insistence on top quality, Kangra garments are all made from raw material originating from this production zone.

How to keep cashmere at its best
Cashmere is a rare and delicate fibre that must be treated gently and with the utmost care to preserve its softness over time.
To make this possible, every Kangra garment comes with its own maintenance kit, the result of targeted research and consisting of a user's manual and set of products including a special shampoo, a brush and a moth-proofing liquid, all specially designed for the care and long life of our cashmere garments.

Here is some general advice for maintaining the good looks of cashmere garments over time.
Use a soft brush to remove any pilling, or the tiny fuzzy clumps that, because of the natural accumulation of short fibres in the weave, are formed on the surface by friction.
Wash, preferably by hand, in water at a temperature no higher than 30°C, using a moderate amount of detergent specifically for cashmere or for delicate items.
Rinse well.
Dry the garment flat, at room temperature, keeping it away from radiators and other heat sources and out of direct sunlight.
Hang it in a cool dry place, and, at season's end, store it in a suitable moth-proofed bag that "breathes".