100% Cashmere
The fibre that survives the most extreme cold
On the Himalayan plateaus and the steppes of Mongolia, where winters drop to forty degrees below zero, lives a small, resilient goat — the Capra hircus. To survive that extreme cold, it develops a second skin: an undercoat of extraordinarily fine and soft fibres that act as a natural insulator. That undercoat is cashmere.
Each spring, when the snow begins to retreat, herders comb that inner layer with slow, precise gestures inherited across generations. It is not sheared or pulled — the animal is accompanied through its natural moulting cycle. Each goat yields barely forty grams of usable fibre per year. To craft a coat, the production of thirty to forty animals is required. A figure that explains everything.
What cashmere is
Cashmere is a natural fibre obtained from the undercoat of the Capra hircus goat, a species adapted to the extreme temperatures of the mountainous regions of Central Asia. Its coat has two layers: a coarser, resistant outer coat that protects from wind, and an inner coat composed of fibres so fine they are up to three times warmer than conventional sheep's wool.
It is this inner coat that international tailoring has pursued for centuries. With a fibre diameter of between 14 and 16 microns — finer than a human hair — cashmere combines silken softness with a lightness and thermal capacity unmatched among natural fibres.
Cashmere represents less than 0.2% of the world's animal fibres. Its rarity is not marketing — it is arithmetic. And its properties justify every gram of that scarcity.
Top Mongolia — the highest standard in the world
Not all cashmere is the same. Fibre diameter, length, natural colour and method of collection create vast differences in quality — and price — between the cashmeres available on the market.
Cashmere from Inner Mongolia — the autonomous region of northern China where goats grow the world's finest undercoat due to its extreme temperatures — is internationally recognised as the highest in quality. The noblest fibres of that production are classified as Top Mongolia: the top 10% of all Mongolian cashmere, with an average fibre diameter of between 14 and 15 microns, long and regular fibres, and an exceptionally pure natural colour.
The cashmere used by Murmells is Top Mongolia. Not for positioning — for technical reasons. It is the only grade that allows the most demanding tailoring techniques, such as double-face, to be worked without compromising softness, drape or durability.
Properties and characteristics
Softness and handle. Silken and immediate, perceptible at first contact. Top Mongolia cashmere can be worn directly against the skin without causing any irritation. It is naturally hypoallergenic.
Thermal capacity. Three times warmer than sheep's wool, at a fraction of the weight. Its hollow fibres trap air and regulate body temperature, insulating against cold without overheating in mild conditions.
Lightness. Extraordinarily light for its insulating capacity. A cashmere coat can be both structured and warm without feeling heavy on the shoulders.
Elasticity and shape memory. The garment recovers its silhouette easily, resists creasing and maintains its drape over the years.
Evolution with wear. Over time, cashmere does not deteriorate — it softens. A well-cared-for garment improves with every season.
Cashmere, pashmina and Baby Cashmere — how they differ
There is considerable terminological confusion around these three categories, which are often used interchangeably but designate technically distinct things.
Cashmere is the general term for the fibre obtained from the undercoat of the Capra hircus. It covers a wide range of qualities, from the most commercial (shorter fibres, diameters of 17-19 microns) to the noblest such as Top Mongolia (14-15 microns). It is the category within which all others sit.
Pashmina is, technically, a variety of cashmere of extra-fine fibre — below 15 microns — traditionally produced in the Kashmir region (Ladakh, northern India) and Nepal. Today the term has been popularised to describe shawls and scarves, but strictly speaking it refers to a specific technical category of cashmere.
Baby Cashmere is the rarest and noblest category. It is obtained from the first combing of the undercoat of Capra hircus kids, collected when they are between six and twelve months old. That fibre has a diameter of between 13 and 13.5 microns — finer still — and its production is so limited that only a handful of maisons in the world work Baby Cashmere commercially. It is, alongside vicuña and Baby Camel, one of only three fibres recognised internationally as luxury fibres.
The pure cashmere used by Murmells today is Top Mongolia. The rarer categories — Baby Cashmere, vicuña — are part of our planned future incorporations.
Ethics and sustainability
Cashmere has been at the centre of a quiet but real conflict for decades: the explosion of global demand for affordable cashmere has led to overgrazing across large areas of Inner Mongolia, with documented consequences for steppe ecosystems and for the wellbeing of the herds.
Murmells is deliberately positioned on the opposite side of that chain: we work exclusively with Top Mongolia cashmere obtained through traditional hand-combing, sourced from the most demanding production lines of the Italian Piedmont, which apply verifiable ethical standards and traceability. The decision is deliberate: fewer coats, better raw material, no compromise with practices that degrade the origin of the fibre.
Cashmere at Murmells
The cashmere fabrics used by Murmells are selected from the historic mills of the Italian Piedmont — a territory that has been the world reference in the treatment of cashmere for over a century, and that supplies the great European high-end maisons. The spinning and finishing processes applied by these mills allow the full potential of the fibre to be drawn out: its softness, its drape, its thermal capacity.
The majority of our pure cashmere coats are crafted using the double-face technique, with fabrics of between 630 and 650 g/m² — the exact weight this construction requires to perform at its full potential. Occasionally, for more fluid garments or transitional pieces, we work lighter weights within the same fibre category.
The result is a cashmere with a character of its own — dense without being heavy, structured without losing fluidity. And a garment that, with proper care, is an investment measured in decades.
Care for cashmere garments
Cleaning
Cashmere woven garments — such as coats — require dry cleaning. Cashmere knitwear can be hand washed in cold water with a neutral detergent, or machine washed on a wool programme at 30 °C maximum with a gentle spin. Never wring or twist — press gently with a towel to absorb water and lay flat to dry.
Cashmere has natural self-cleaning properties. Between wears, air the garment in a ventilated space — it is enough to keep it fresh without washing.
Storage
Always store folded, never hung. When storing between seasons, make sure the garment is clean and dry, and keep it in a breathable fabric bag. Add a cedar or lavender sachet to protect the natural fibres from moths.
Maintenance
If pilling appears, it is a natural process — remove it with a cashmere-specific brush. Never use an adhesive roller. If the handle loses softness over time, an effective trick is to fold the garment into a sealed bag and leave it in the freezer for 48 hours — the fibres recover their natural alignment.
Discover our cashmere garments
We are preparing new pieces in this fabric. In the meantime, you can explore our current collection. View collection