All about cashmere

Everything you need to know about the precious fiber, how we make our garments and how to best care for them.

Basics of cashmere

Cashmere from Henderson Cashmere began its journey on the high steppes of Inner Mongolia, where temperatures can drop as low as minus 30 degrees Celsius. To protect themselves from the cold, cashmere goats produce a soft, fluffy down beneath a layer of long, coarse hair. When temperatures rise in the spring, shepherds carefully separate this "underdown" from the outer coat using a long-toothed comb.

Each goat only produces around 200 grams of this precious fiber each year, so the "underdown" from two or more goats is needed to make just one cashmere sweater.

Cashmere quality

To understand how unique the quality of cashmere is, you must first learn about cashmere fibers.

It can be simply understood this way: the longer and finer the fiber, the higher the quality. Long fibers remain twisted into the yarn, thus reducing pilling and the garment retains its original shape. Garments made with high-quality cashmere fibers will retain their luster and shape, even after many years of use.

There are three qualities of cashmere:

Grade A is the finest quality cashmere, with an average fibre length of 34 - 40 mm and a diameter of 14 - 15.5 microns. 

In comparison, the finest wool fiber has a diameter of about 20 microns and a human hair has a width of 60 microns or more.

Henderson Cashmere uses only the finest 'Grade A' quality cashmere in all our garments.

Grades B and C have shorter fiber lengths and wider diameters. These lower fiber qualities are used by many cashmere brands and result in garments that are more prone to pilling and wear, as well as losing their shape.

Knitting Basics

Ply refers to the number of threads twisted together to make a yarn. The more threads in the yarn, the higher the ply. For example, a yarn made up of two threads is called a 2-ply yarn, four threads is a 4-ply yarn, and so on.

Gauge refers to the number of stitches per inch of knitted fabric. A garment with a high gauge will have more stitches per inch and is therefore finer than a garment with a lower gauge, which has fewer stitches per inch.

Yarn weight is also an important factor in terms of quality. This has to do with both the thickness of each thread wrapped into a yarn strand, and the number of plies in the yarn versus the knitting gauge used to produce the garment.

For example: a specially carded ultra-fine plissé thread made into a 2-ply yarn is used to make our Whisperlight scarf. This is what gives the Whisperlight scarf its characteristic plissé and flowing, soft and delicate feel.

For our thicker 5- and 7-gauge Henderson double Cashmere™️, we increase the plushness to create a deep, soft, creamy-thick texture that retains its original shape and has minimal pilling.

For example, our 7 gauge quality is knitted with a 4-ply yarn and our 5 gauge is knitted with a 6-ply yarn. Garments made with a thinner yarn knitted in a lower gauge will result in a loose knit that will pill and lose its shape.

Extraordinary properties

Although extremely fine, cashmere fibres are hollow, providing natural, lightweight insulation. In colder weather, body heat is absorbed into these tiny air pockets, regulating temperature to keep you warm and comfortable.

Cashmere fiber also has a "hygroscopic" effect that draws moisture away from the skin. This creates a cooling effect in warmer months, while helping to keep you comfortably warm in winter.

These extraordinary properties enable cashmere garments to maintain a comfortable temperature all year around.