If carefully taken care of in a way that is mindful of its unique properties, cashmere clothing can last an incredibly long time and remain an important part of your wardrobe.
A lot of the cashmere that is sold takes advantage of the raw colour of the cashmere wool, which is often white but can also be grey, black or brown depending on the goat that has been combed.
Obviously, cashmere garments in other colours do exist, but if you wanted to add a personal touch to your wardrobe, could you dye your cashmere yourself?
The simple answer is yes, but you must be very careful with which dyes you use and your application technique in order to not do any permanent damage to your clothes.
In terms of its ability to handle dye, cashmere can provide a beautiful even result, but at the same time, the best dyes to use are acid dyes as they can be applied at low temperatures and avoid accidentally felting and shrinking a cashmere outfit the way hot water solutions would.
They are inherently low pH, which means that they will not damage the protein fibres, do not require sudden temperature changes and there are a range of options to suit whatever kind of finish you wish to use.
With that said, there are alternatives if you do not want to use acid dye, such as Dylon packs and pods, food colouring or even coffee pods to add a natural tint to a lighter cashmere garment.
Make sure to wash your garment before you start mixing your dye colour. Put it in the dyed water for around half an hour before gently but thoroughly washing it until all of the excess dye comes out.
Once it dries naturally, its beautiful chromatic makeover is complete and it can be worn or carefully stored.
