12 Steps to Cashmere
It’s considered one of the most luxurious fibres in the world
and for excellent reason: cashmere is conceived in some of
the most remote and frigid areas of the world, causing the
mountain goats of Central Asia and Mongolia to grow the
warmest coats made of the finest fibres. The key to exceptional
cashmere however, is the infrastructure plus attention to
detail needed to go from raw material to luxury garment.
By combining the traditional methods used to harvest its raw
product with modern technology, such as state-of-the-art
computerised knitting machines, cashmere emporium
N. Peal remains at the forefront of the cashmere market. Their
approach allows them to produce goods that are as luxurious
as ever, but in patterns and styles that were once impossible.
N. Peal sets itself apart in the textiles industry due to the
standards set and the total control they exercise over every
part of the process.
Founded in 1936, N. Peal quickly became synonymous with
exceptional cashmere goods — and has been ever since. After
cornering the premium wool market in late 1930’s Britain,
founder Nat Peal set his sights on America. He began by
making yearly trips to New York and Boston, where he proved
that he knew how to put on a good show. He would always set
himself up in the most luxurious suite of the finest hotel — a
canny move that provided him with the ideal setting in which
to impress wealthy clients and entertain members of the press.
With his transatlantic reputation on the rise, Nat found his
clothes ascending to the utmost heights of fashion royalty;
N. Peal garments were soon adorning the backs of some of
America’s greatest stars. N. Peal had entered in to that cradle
of post-war glamour: Hollywood.
The elegant designs, Nat’s refined ‘Britishness’ (his accent
proved immensely popular) and the exceptional quality of
his garments helped attracted these illustrious customers.
One could say that the N. Peal aesthetic, a synthesis of
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contemporary style and timeless elegance, had found its
parallel in these famous personalities. Marilyn Monroe, Grace
Kelly, Ava Gardner, Cary Grant and Elizabeth Taylor have all
worn N. Peal, and this relationship with icons of the silver
screen endures to this day. In 2012, the brand was approached
to make a bespoke order of sweaters for Daniel Craig, playing
James Bond in Skyfall. The pairing of Bond and N. Peal made
complete sense. Both are associated with luxury and products
of supreme quality — Bond only ever uses the best, after all.
Moreover, Bond’s enduring and much-admired style is classic
and refined, but is equally of each film’s time. So too with
N. Peal, a brand renowned for timeless styles that is equally
committed to producing design-focused cashmere goods for
the modern market.
Why does N. Peal travel all the way to Mongolia to source
cashmere? It is incredibly cold. Temperatures can drop to -20
degrees Celsius in the winter. Just to survive these conditions,
the goats grow a fleecey down fibre to keep them warm. In
the spring, when the goat no longer need this layer, the team
can harvest the fibre.
When it is Springtime, the cashmere is harvested by combing
the fibre away from the goat. The goat naturally sheds its
cashmere in the Spring, but combing collects the fibres in a