Camel
hair fabric is extremely soft and fine. It is wonderfully light-weight with
warmth and durability. This lustrous fabric is preferred in its golden tan
natural colour though it is sometimes dyed with navy, red or dark brown.
Since it is highly prized, camel hair is usually blended with wool to make
it economical.
The camel hair fabric comes from the Bactrian (two hump) camel which is of
Camelidae Gray family. It is bred in the extremely cold climates of
Eastern and Central Asia particularly in China and Mongolia. The finest
camel hair in the world comes from China. The significant producers of camel
hair are China, Mongolia, Iran, Afghanistan, Russia, New Zealand, Tibet and
Australia.
Camel hair fabric is obtained from hairs shed by the camel naturally in its
molting period (during spring). Camel hair fabric is generally left undyed
because of the beauty of its color. The natural color of the fabric is
usually reddish brown. Sometimes variants from brown to grey are also seen.
Camlet and aba are the popular camel hair fabric.
Characteristics of Camel Hair Fabric
- It is a luxurious fabric.
- It is extremely soft and fine.
- It is lustrous.
- It is strong.
- It is light-weight.
- It has long nap and is warm.
- It is waterproof.
- It accepts dye easily.
Uses of Camel Hair Fabric
- The soft and luxurious quality of the camel hair fabric is suitable
for making suits, coats, blazers, jackets, skirts, hosiery, caps and
robes.
- Since camel hair fabric is warm, it is widely used for sweaters,
gloves, scarves, mufflers, overcoats, quilt, etc.
- Camel hair fabric is also used as topcoat, sportswear and sports
hosiery because of its light-weight characteristic.
- It is also used felt for the Mongolian yurts (tents), herdsmen's
winter coats and carpet backing as it is also waterproof abreast of
warmth.
