Fake Cashmere: What It Is and How To Spot It

Cashmere is an unbelievably soft luxury fabric. Fashion enthusiasts everywhere adore this material for its rich appearance and breathability. However, every high-quality, expensive product has its cheaper, faux counterpart. Fake cashmere is very much a thing, but you can avoid it by learning what it is and how to spot it below.

A Look at Real Cashmere

You can’t identify fake cashmere unless you know what the real deal is like. Real cashmere comes from the soft undercoat of cashmere goats, primarily found in Mongolia and China. It is renowned for its luxurious feel, warmth, and lightweight nature.

The fibers are softer, finer, and longer than most other animal fibers. Therefore, even though there are different cashmere grades, all real cashmere garments are incredibly comfortable to wear.

True cashmere is also an investment. Garments made from genuine cashmere showcase craftsmanship and quality that can last for years with proper care—and the price reflects this.

Why Fake Cashmere Exists

Cashmere is particularly popular for faking because its authentic products are incredibly expensive and difficult to make. After all, it takes four to eight cashmere goats to make a single cashmere sweater!

Also, the market for faux luxury items is as old as can be. Companies that don’t have the means to source the real deal but still want to capitalize off the demand for luxury goods produce fakes. These are lower-quality alternatives that fill the need for accessible fashion but can be misleading for customers.

How To Identify Fake Cashmere

There’s nothing wrong with going faux if that’s what you want. However, if you want genuine cashmere, keep an eye out for the following indicators of inauthenticity:

• Check the label: Look for labels that boast 100-percent cashmere. Brands that put this information front and center on their cashmere products are probably telling the truth. Anything less may indicate a blend.
• Feel the texture: Real cashmere is incredibly soft and velvety. If it feels scratchy or rough in any way, it’s likely fake.
• Pay attention to the price: If it seems too good to be true, it probably is. Genuine cashmere is expensive because it takes so many restricted resources to make. A cheap real-cashmere product simply isn’t possible.
• Perform a smell test: Authentic cashmere has a natural scent, unlike synthetic fibers, which may have a chemical smell.
• Try the burn test: A small sample of real cashmere, when burnt, smells like burnt hair and turns to ash; fake cashmere melts. Obviously, though this test is effective, it should only be used on garments you don’t care even a little bit about. You should also be very certain the piece is fake before performing this test.

Though faux fabrics have their place in fashion, you might not want them in your closet. If you’re on the hunt for an authentic cashmere garment, you can find it with this information on what fake cashmere is and how to spot it.