Over the years, pashmina scarf, shawl, wrap or stole (hereto referred to as pashmina) is an indispensable fashion accessory for women. It’s sought by most of the elegant women who want to look gorgeous. Its demand is on the increase. This has given rise to the fake versions of pashmina. Customers get deceived by the replicas, particularly, those customers who have little knowledge of the difference between the real pashmina and the fake ones. With the influx of fake pashminas in the market, both online and offline, some women are not able to enjoy the true luxury of the pashmina.
The fiber used in fake pashmina is mostly synthetic like acrylic, viscose, yarn, and silk, etc. It is rather surprising that some of the sellers are misusing the word pashmina using it as a suffix to the other abovementioned fibers and using labels like viscose pashmina, acrylic pashmina, etc. How can the two fibers acrylic and pashmina go together?
Given below are simple and easy to follow authenticity checks to determine if the pashmina is real and genuine or a fake one.
- Look and Feel. If we look at a real pashmina and a fake one more deliberately, the distinct touch and feel will easily reveal the difference between the two. The fake one is shinier in its looks and slippery in its touch. The real pashmina is soft to touch and matte in its looks. Silk pashmina does have mild shine. It is warmer, more comfortable and cozier than the fake one.
- Burn Test. Carefully cut a small strand of one of the tassels and burn it. Ash of the real pashmina will be uniform powder and it smells like that of burning off hair but that of a fake one will be in the form of sticky beads. It will not come off easily and the smell of the ash will be that of chemical.
- Guarantee. If the sale is not accompanied by a money-back guarantee, there are good chances that the pashmina purchased by you is a fake one. Usually, fake pashmina is sold at dirt cheap rates; far less than the real pashmina.
- Discounted Prices. Some of the vendors are selling pashmina at a discounted price which is half, one third or even one-fourth of the regular price. It’s an open question as to how they can manage that and sell pashmina at such a low price. Certainly, the regular price indicated by them is exaggerated. These sellers happen to be focusing on the customers who are price conscious and are always looking for large discounts.
- Online Reviews. If you are buying pashmina online, it will be useful that you have a look at third-party online reviews which will assist you in taking the right decision.
- Make. The real pashmina is mostly produced in India and Nepal. If the make of a country is other than that, there are good chances that you are buying a fake pashmina.
Some have suggested wiggle and rubbing test but we don’t subscribe to that. Similarly, some have talked about piling and weave. All of these once actually practiced do not hold well.
Make good use of your money and see to it that you are buying real pashmina and not a fake one.