Shall we compare cashmere?

[NicolaSeven]

Just interested to see how different brands stack up. I have a cardi bought from Banana Republic five years ago which is flawless.

Yet I am combing the bobbles off a brand new Pure sweater like a motherfucker.

Is brora worth the investment? What else is good?

[herethereandeverywhere]

I have 2 long length ones from J Crew. The navy pils and bobbles like mad, the grey marl not so much. I bought them in the US with no sales tax and 25% off - otherwise definitely not worth the money.

[leadrightfoot]

I have 8 Uniqlo cashmere jumpers, three of their merino wool jumpers and two lambs wool jumpers.

They wash fine, slight bobbling under arms when worn repeatedly with coats in winter for the lambs wool and cashmere ones. Merino ones are a bit thin. When I say fine a standard 40oC wash nothing special.

I live in mine from October to April, they are all 4 years old so have had a hard well worn life. Jaeger cashmere jumper and cardigans I have had for going on 15 years, great again slight bobbling under arms when worn repeatedly with a coat

I have F&F cashmere which are ok but need cool wool washing only.

I love the angora mix of woolovers for cardigans too, have several and they seem good natured.

[shins]

I love Eric Bompard. Great sales in January and July. Really great quality.

[mathanxiety]

All of mine came from charity shops.
S5A Saks Fifth Avenue own brand crew neck -- very nice, pills a bit but washes well, extremely soft, and pills come off easily.
Sigrid Olsen -- very nice, washes well despite 'dry clean only' instruction. No pilling.
Unidentified maker blue heathery looking fibre zip front with kangaroo pockets and hood -- brilliant. I wear it most days in spring and autumn. Washes really well and pilling is minimal. I wish I knew who made it. The original owner had removed all tags.
JCrew -- very nice, no pilling, soft and washes well.
Kors by MK - silk and cashmere blend crew neck, excellent, really soft and light.

[hackedoffnow]

Jaeger do excellent cashmere jumpers. The cowl necks are beautiful. Well fitted, dense and wash well and get better with age I think. You can pick them up in the sale and they always have an extra 20% off them.

[howabout]

Pure Like their basic shapes and the frilly edge cardigans. Mine is all over 5 years old and still perfect. Waiting for them to produce the perfect shade of strawberry pink.

Boden again mine are quite old and I think their quality is not always consistent but I have 2 heavyweight ones and a lightweight polo and they have good shapes which are roomy but not sloppy and have not changed with age and washing.

Agree Woolovers merino / cashmere blend is a great everyday alternative.

[CherylTunt]

I have lots of Boden cashmere and it's mostly fine. I'm wearing a crew neck right now that is getting on for two years old, had lots of wear, and it's got no bobbles and has got softer and thicker with washing. Have a few more crews from various years and it's the same with them, and with my beloved long open cardigan from four or five years ago. I did order a hoody though that was quite disappointing - thin and scratchy - sent it back.

I can't afford Brora new, but have two from Ebay - they have bobbled quite a lot, maybe to do with the knit? They are this model. They're so beautiful though that I forgive them and just carefully remove the bobbles.

I had one Johnstons cashmere cardi and it was undoubtedly the softest and best cashmere I have ever felt. Sadly the moths agreed

[Greengardenpixie]

I have a comb that i bought from amazon. It tore a hole in my jumpers fortunately not a cashmere one!!

[Greengardenpixie]

Well i didnt think it was anything to do with quality. I have a cashmere cardigan. Bobbles like crazy, but less so as it has been worn. I thought it was natural.

[Orangeanddemons]

I thought bobbling was inevitable too. Isn't that why they sell cashmere combs?

[Greengardenpixie]

Is bobbling not just part of the wool and the fibres? I thought bobbling was inevitable?

[isadora077]

Trail the charity shops and they do appear espesh men's ones in lovely basic colours. Other than that - Uniqlo. Brora is the gold standard but waaay out of my price range. (Found a sagey one in Oxfam last week for a tenner 'though).

[cressetmama]

Uniqlo! Very good colour range, wash and wear well and competitive on price.

[Djangor]

I wear cashmere often as wool mixes with angora or mohair make me sneeze & wool other than cashmere or merino tends to make me itch & can lead to a skin reaction like hives. My first cashmere buy was off ebay & was a Johnstons sweater - top quality when I got it & still looks just as good. Department stores like Selfridges are good for big mark downs at sale time on quality brands like Johnstons, Pringle, Ballantyne etc, but they tend to be generous on size. For me Brora is best for top quality cashmere in small sizes; their colour ranges always suit me & everything I have ever bought still looks as new. I also rate Denner but they don't do small sizes. I have a few bits of cheap cashmere for everyday which I don't mind getting tomato sauce on etc and have found Pure best (only the ordinary range - the Gassato range seems to be so thin it shows every bump etc through), then J Crew (but only sale time as otherwise expensive). I won't bother buying M&S or Boden cashmere again. The point about good cashmere is that it seems to go on forever - I don't have too many other garments which still look good as new after 10 years.

[Snowbility]

Forgive the scummy link but here the daily mail share their opinion on cheaper cashmere.

[EldritchCleavage]

Ballantyne is the nicest thick cashmere I've worn, and a sadly defunct label called CXD London the best for fine gauge.

My last Pure buy did pill rather, I have to say. Uniqlo does not last at all well I don't think.

[baskingseals]

Boden, lovely shape but very thin and already bobbley, haven't dared wash yet. Would not buy again, even in the sale.

John Lewis, nice and warm, but not stunning, and ds2 ripped the neck so I always have to wear a scarf.

Crew from charity shop, definitely the best quality but not the world's most glamourous shape.

French connection from second hand shop, soft but not very thick. Would not buy again.

Has anybody bought any Uniqlo cashmere? Is it nice?

[SilverSixpence]

I have a Gap jumper which is amazing quality from a couple of years ago, looks new and has been worn loads. The cardigan I got from there last year is tatty and hideous.

Pure collection jumper dress (via TK Maxx) still looks nice although not as new, washed really well in the machine.

Brora (via ebay) developed holes in a few places, the cashmere is lovely quality though.

Crumpet (via ebay) fine knit cardigan - really nice quality, not bobbled but quite fine fabric

Boden (ebay outlet) fantastic bargain, looks like new still - this is the AW cashmere not the SS which is apparently thin and rubbish

can you tell i like cashmere

[prettybird]

M&S used to be good but is now crap (unless they improved last season as I told dh not to buy from them for Christmas). Pilling/bobbling and really thin. I had a cardy that wore through within a year under the arms and at the elbow (and I hadn't worn it that much) and I had to throw it out . In contrast I have a Pringle cashmere jumper that must now be c.20 years old which is still as good as new.

It's as if M&S chose a price point and then reduced the quality of their cashmere to meet it (I believe it is something to do with the length of fibres).

The John Lewis stuff that dh has bought me in recent years is still looking good and wearing well.

[Liveinthepresent]

I think this has been widely discussed on here but I am so disappointed with my White Company cardigan. More bobbles than cashmere. That was even without having washed it.

[Ruralninja]

Aquelven it now resembles a small felty child's jumper and so I gave it to my 5 year old niece... bit snug on her too!

[faustina]

N Peal quality (someone asked): I have a scarf from them which is lovely, but I also have a cardigan which is very ordinary compared to my Brora stuff

[Aquelven]

Ruralninja I had that happen to one of mine, DH put it in the machine on a hot wash with the towels when I was in hospital
Do you still have it? If so you can get it back to almost full size. Hand wash it & while it's still damp gently stretch it back into shape. Just keep pulling gently, lengthwise & width wise. Mine came back to within an inch of the original size, good as new.

[Aquelven]

The best quality ones I have are Pringle, great fit & wash like a dream. I wouldn't pay full price though, I get them from their factory shop.
Johnstons is lovely too but too expensive as no better in quality than Pringle & £££ even from the factory.

[Ruralninja]

I had an absolutely amazing cashmere teal v neck from Jaeger - bought in the sale. Just perfect and luxurious and brill. DH boil washed it. Readers, I nearly left him.