A short manual
Care & storage
Pashmina, treated with a little patience, outlives the person who buys it. Treated badly, it can be ruined in a single afternoon.
Most of what follows is common sense once you accept that a pashmina shawl is a piece of art that you happen to wear. We send each piece out with a printed card that says roughly the same thing as this page, but in fewer words.
01. Washing
- Dry clean is safest, and for embroidered or tilla pieces it is what we recommend.
- If you must wash a plain pashmina at home, do it by hand, in cool water (below 30°C), with a small amount of mild soap meant for wool — never an enzyme detergent.
- Do not rub. Squeeze gently. Lift the shawl out of the water flat, never wrung.
- Rinse twice, the second time in cool water with a teaspoon of white vinegar — it sets the natural dyes.
02. Drying
- Press out water by rolling the shawl in a clean dry towel.
- Lay flat on a fresh towel, in shade, away from direct sun. Reshape gently before it dries.
- Never hang a wet pashmina. The weight of the water will stretch it and the drape will be permanently altered.
03. Ironing
- Use a cool iron, with a clean cotton cloth between the iron and the shawl.
- Steam from a kettle, held a hand’s width away, will relax most creases without contact.
- Never iron tilla, kalamkari or aari work directly. Press only the plain ground if at all.
04. Folding & storage
- Fold the shawl loosely, with the embroidery facing inward. Refold along a different line every few weeks to avoid a permanent crease.
- Wrap in unbleached muslin or pure cotton. Never plastic — pashmina needs to breathe.
- Store flat in a wooden box if possible. Cedar shavings, neem leaves or a few cloves discourage moths; do not use chemical mothballs.
- Air the shawl out in the shade once or twice a year, for an afternoon.
05. Wearing
- Avoid spraying perfume or hair-mist directly onto the cloth. Apply scents first, then put the shawl on.
- Keep away from open buckles, brooches with sharp pins, and rough jewellery — pashmina catches easily.
- A small pull is normal and can be eased back into the cloth with the head of a needle. Do not cut a snag.
- If you spill something, blot — do not rub. Take the piece to a textile-aware dry cleaner promptly.
عمر بھر کا ساتھی
“A companion for life.”
If something goes wrong — a snag, a small tear, a spot you cannot remove — please write to us. We can usually repair a piece in our own workshop, sometimes invisibly. There is no expiry date on this.