Know our yarns
KNOW OUR YARNS
The characteristics of cashmere
Cashmere has always been a synonym of softness and elegance. Originally its colours were white, grey, brown or black, but then the unmistakable Italian style developed a rich colour palette. Albeit originally coming from China, India and Pakistan, this precious wool type is mainly processed in Italy.
Cashmere is considered precious because of two main features: on the one hand the “duvet” velvety fur from which it derives is developed only in particular climatic conditions and when there is a big temperature difference between night and day; on the other, unlike traditional wool, cashmere needs to be subject to a special process to separate it from animal hair and this is why it is collected in the Spring by manually combing the animals.
This is the beginning of a hand-made process leading to the production of the yarns that are turned by Maglificio Rita into soft, warm, precious and fashionable items.
The characteristics of silk
Silk lines, the longest animal fibre exiting in the world, often lead one to think of the elegance of the ancient courts of Chinese emperors; emperor Xi Ling Shi is said to have started the rearing of silkworms, thus making the luxury clothes which used to be exclusively reserved for emperors accessible to other wealthy social classes.
Although Chinese emperors endeavoured to keep it secret, the process became known in other areas of the world until it arrived in Italy, where the famous silk area developed near Como. Silk is an example of Italian excellence and is an elegant yarn used by Maglificio Rita to produce modern and charming items.
The characteristics of wool
Be it produced from sheep, rabbits or exotic camels and lamas, wool has an excellent insulating effect against both low and high temperature and, thanks to its technological features, it is easy to dye, spin and process.
Australia and New Zealand, as well as the countries of former Soviet Union, closer to Europe, are the main producers of this yarn typically used in clothing but also in interior design fabrics and fillings. Wool can be used alone o in combination with other materials: mixed with silk, it leads to precious items; combined with cotton and linen, it is used in Summer collections, especially when combined with artificial yarns.
The quality of a yarn, however, is expressed by its “count”, i.e. the ration between its length and weight: the higher the count, the more precious the yarn. In addition, the fineness of fibres depends on the area where the wool was collected. The softness of wool, in contrast, derived from the typical gather of the fibre.
Thanks to its thorough knowledge of yarns, Maglificio Rita selects high quality wool for elegant, comfortable and long-lasting items.
