Cashmere Process | WOOLMERE GROUP

CASHMERE

Manufacturing Process

From Fibres to Yarns

Our fibres come from the magnificent cashmere goats of the Gobi Dessert who produce the finest, longest and softest cashmere in the world.

Join us in this journey where we will show you how we use the precious fibres to make cashmere scarves, blankets, hats, gloves and other cashmere products.

Combing or Shearing

Step 1

Cashmere is generally shed by the goat during April, this fine fibre is collected by hand-combing or shearing

Sorting Cashmere

Step 2

Artisans manually sort each fibre depending on its colours, origin and fineness.

Cleaning Cashmere

Step 3

The sorted cashmere is washed to remove impurities such as grease, dirt and straw.

The process contains washing and drying.

Carding (Deharing) Cashmere

Step 4

The cleaned cashmere fibres go through a carding machine to remove coarse hair. After several times of carding, the fibres are separated, disentangled and aired to give the fluffy appearance.

Dyeing Cashmere Fibres

Step 5

We use three kinds of dyeing processes.

1. Fibre dyeing:

We dye the carded cashmere prior to weaving, which gets the best result. Preferred method.

2. Yarn dyeing:

This consists of dyeing the spools of raw wool thread after spinning.

3. Piece dyeing:

This is generally the least expensive technique. The product is woven (or knitted) in its natural colour and then dyed into different colours.

Spinning the Fibres into Yarn

Step 6

Spinning consists of twisting the cashmere fibres to obtain a more durable continuous yarn, transforming the fibres into a fine, smooth, compact yarn.

There are three kinds of spinning

1. Worsted spinning (long fibres):

The fibres are combed during spinning to remove the air spaces and more twist is applied, creating a fine, smooth, durable yarn. This method is used primarily for high quality fine gauge knitwear and summer weight scarves.

2. Woollen spinning (mid-long fibres):

The fibres are not combed when they are spun, and a little twist is applied. This gives a soft, lofty thread. This method is used primarily for knitwear and winter scarves.

3. Semi-worsted spinning (short fibres): This is the least expensive spinning method. It can spin short and thick fibres into yarn. This method is used primarily for low quality thinner knitwear and summer weight scarves.

Working with the Cashmere yarn from Weaving to End Product

Wrapping

Step 7

The cashmere yarns (threads) are drawn off by a drum to which they get wrapped around another drum.

Weaving

Step 8

The warp threads are drawn up though the loom and then the weft yarn is inserted in the desired design, this is the weaving process at work. We use different thickness of yarns and, by increasing or decreasing the density of the threads, we can create different widths and thicknesses of fabrics.

Darning

Step 9

Once it is woven the cylinder (woven roll) is taken out and inspected for any faults that may have occurred during weaving. If faults are found then they must be repaired by hand to make the fabric perfect.

Finishing

Step 10

The fabric is then sent to a finishing processes which includes the following steps:

Brushing:

Rotating cylinders wrapped with steel cloth, brushes the cashmere fabrics to make a fuzz on its surface.

Fulling:

This involves two procedures, scouring (washing) and milling (thickening).

The main function of fulling is to thicken the fabric by matting the cashmere fibres together to give it strength and increase waterproofing (felting). This is vital in the case of woollen scarves. Felting of cashmere occurs when mechanical agitation causes the microscopic barbs on the surface of cashmere fibres to hook together.

Drying: 8 hours after teaseling, the wet fabric goes through a drying stenter.

Teaseling: For fabrics which need water wave effects only. We use the process to make more luxury scarves.

Shearing：Cutting the long fibres on the surface of the fabric to get a constant level of height giving the final fabric a smooth and flat effect.

Steaming and Setting: This makes for better colour fastness and avoids shrinkage in the future. The fabric is brushed again to make a smooth clean surface.