Cashmere knitwear can be hand washed or dry-cleaned. We recommend hand washing frequently following these simple guidelines:
- Soak garment in lukewarm water using Brora Cashmere Shampoo or a similar mild detergent.
- Squeeze suds gently through fabric – do not rub, wring or stretch the garment.
- Rinse thoroughly but carefully in clean lukewarm water.
- Saturated garments should not be lifted before excess water has been gently squeezed out, as they may stretch. A short, light spin in a washing machine will remove most of the water.
- Smooth garment back into original shape and place flat on a towel – dry naturally away from direct heat such as radiators or sunlight. Do not tumble dry.
- When dry press lightly with a cool iron.
We recommend professional dry cleaning for our garments made of 100% woven cashmere.
For gauzy knits it is very important that the wash care instructions are followed very closely.
If they are washed for too long or in too hot water they will start to pill quicker than normal cashmere garments would.
Cashmere is one of the finest natural fibres in the world and is combed from the undercoat of Chinese and Mongolian goats.
Knitwear made from this precious and delicate fibre is luxurious to wear but requires a little more care and attention than
products made from coarser wools.
After wearing your new cashmere garment for the first times you might find small balls of fibre forming on the surface.
These small balls or "pills" are caused by some of the loose fibre tangling together as areas of your garment are rubbed during wear.
The "pilling" is not indicative of inferior quality – it is an inevitable consequence of the careful processing of this fine fibre.
Pills can be easily removed by hand or by using a cashmere comb available from Brora.
You will find that, removing the pills in this way, the garment will actually consolidate and soften in handle and touch.
Like fine wine, cashmere will improve with age if cared for properly.
There are a variety of ways, the most effective is to prevent their arrival in the first place.
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Never put clothes away dirty. Sweat, hair and food stains attract moths and make it more likely for the female moths to find the
perfect site for their eggs to hatch.
Wash your cashmere with our special cashmere shampoo which is vegetable based and therefore gentle and perfect for the job. Or
dry clean them as moths are put off by the smell. If you are thinking of storing your cashmere for the summer then do so in one
of our zip storage bags in a clean cupboard until the next season.
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Moths hate light and being disturbed. Their life cycle is about 21 days, so every month open your drawers and shake your clothing.
You might even consider airing your clothes in the full sun as larvae are strongly repelled by light and will fall from clothing.
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It may sound odd, but try freezing moths out, a method that works particularly well with cashmere. Wrap the cashmere in
acid-free tissue paper and put it in a plastic bag. Freeze overnight, then defrost slowly. This will kill anything,
including moth larvae.
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Use anti moth products such as our cedar balls, hanging sachets and infusers and pop these in your drawers or loop them round
your hangers to keep the moths at bay. They are made using ingredients such as lavender, rosemary, clove or cedar wood and as
much as we love this smell, moths absolutely hate it. However, remember to replace these products every season.
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Last but not least, keep your wardrobes clean. Make a habit of completely clearing them out, vacuum and then clean using water
and all-purpose detergent.
However, if you have ended up with holes in one of your favourites, don’t despair. We do hold yarn from the previous few seasons in
all of our stores and can often match up the colour although you do have to darn it yourself – we couldn’t risk getting our enemy
onto the mill floor!