Shawls

A shawl from Kashmir begins long before the loom. It begins on the high plateaus of Ladakh, where the Changthangi goat sheds a winter underfleece so fine it is measured in microns, then carried down through Srinagar workshops where spinners, dyers, weavers and embroiderers each add a hand. Some pieces in this edit are woven plain and worn for their weight alone; others carry months of needlework drawn from a centuries-old vocabulary of paisley and vine. To understand what you are holding, it helps to read how heritage pashmina is made, the patience behind Sozni needlework, and how to recognise a pure pashmina. A Kashmiri shawl is also, quietly, wedding dress code: an ivory or champagne pashmina over a bridal gown, a deeper embroidered tone for the mother of the bride, a fine wrap that keeps a guest warm through an English evening reception without hiding the outfit underneath. If the shawl is for a wedding day, it is worth judging weight and drape in person — our Birmingham shop in Stirchley keeps this edit to hand for exactly that.