Loro Piana - the perfect past and present of the legendary brand
Loro Piana is a company that is famous all over the world for the unique qualities of the wool produced by Loro Piana.
Constantly developing and progressing, Loro Piana creates new generations of fabrics with innovative characteristics of comfort, lightness, and beauty.The company, officially established in the early 20th century by Pietro loro Piana, has a long history – in fact, the loro Piana family has been engaged in wool since the beginning of the 19th century. In the 70s, his sons Sergio, Franco and Pierre took over the management of the company's Affairs and started the global export of wool fabrics from the Loro Piana brand. Today, the company is one of the world's leading producers of wool from Australian and new Zealand Merino, Mongolian and Chinese cashmere, as well as other types of wool. By the way. It is Loro Piana that has the unique right to produce fabrics made from the wool of the Peruvian vicuna - the most expensive in the world.
Costume fabrics Loro Piana
The selection of high-quality raw materials in Loro Piana is given the main attention – because only with this approach can you guarantee real high quality standards in each batch of fabrics produced. Now the company produces several fabrics that are known and in demand in many clothing factories - one of them is Teresa Tardia, which, along with other types of wool, actively uses Loro Piana wool. Loro Piana also creates their own lines of clothing and other wool products.
Brothers-managing companies Sergio and pier Luigi loro Piana
A key turn in the history of the Loro Piana brand occurred in the 70s. Then two brothers-Sergio and pier Luigi loro Piana-noticed that good clothing for sailing regattas was in short supply. All their lives, fond of sailing and everything related to the sea, the Italians decided to deal with this problem personally. Since then, the loro Piana brothers have been successfully launching products on the world market that they create exclusively at their own will and guided by their own needs - but in addition to sailing regattas, they are fond of horse Polo, concourses, racing collectible cars and other, no less interesting activities. In addition to high-quality wool fabrics and casual clothing, the company has become famous for accessories and specialized clothing for all these sports . Specialized clothing for such sports should have unique properties: wear-resistant, waterproof, windproof, practical and at the same time look expensive. All the technologies developed for sports are fully applied in all production cycles, so Loro Piana fabrics are rightfully considered the standard of quality.
Regatta held in Italy by the loro Piana brothers - Loro Piana Superyacht 2010
The motto of the Loro Piana brand is «to be aware, not to be visible». Already the sixth generation of managers of the company are people who know a lot about fabrics and valuable, rare yarn. Conservative and durable products produced by the company are outside of fashion trends - and, despite this, are a great investment for those who understand the world of wool. Every item or fabric. going under the brand name of loro Piana-extremely honest in all aspects of the thing. Despite the fact that the price of all products is quite high, even the uninitiated can understand how it is formed. In addition, many brands of Loro Piana have their own, extremely interesting history. And this is not surprising - sellers and managers of the company personally communicate and sign contracts with traditional cattle breeders of China, Mongolia, Peru, Tasmania and other countries that are no less curious. Every such trip requires a lot of preparation - to communicate with such people and convince them to save the most valuable fibers of rare wool, you need to know all the customs and traditions.
Animal welfare advocates usually avoid things of animal origin - but this does not apply to Loro Piana wool. To obtain the wool of certain animals, the company had to protect entire livestock - for example, this happened with the Peruvian vicuna, which in the middle of the century were almost exterminated and were included in the Red Book. Since the time when the Italians intervened, the vicuna are carefully protected, and their population is steadily growing - and if poachers used to kill valuable llamas for profit, now they are protected by law, live in a reserve - to get their wool, they are just neatly trimmed and combed, extracting valuable fibers.
But Loro Piana is not just about history and tradition. The company's technologists are actively working on innovations - the recently patented Storm System for processing wool fibers makes them waterproof using a molecular membrane, while leaving them soft to the touch and light: this is a real gift for athletes and those who often find themselves in adverse weather conditions, but do not like synthetics.
Fabrics Loro Piana
Cashmere
The softest and most refined wool in the world. The name comes from the area of Kashmir (India), where it was first produced. However, now the main suppliers of high-quality cashmere are China and Mongolia. Cashmere is a thin and soft down (undercoat) of the Tibetan mountain goat, which lives at an altitude of 4000 — 4500 meters, where the temperature does not rise above minus 10 degrees Celsius. It is this difficult climate that makes cashmere so incredibly soft and light and able to surprisingly retain heat. Breeders tried to breed cashmere goats in other places, exporting them to Australia, New Zealand and Scotland. But in other climates, the precious undercoat lost its qualities.
Cashmere is plucked or combed by hand with a special pinch in the spring, when the goat does not need down after the winter cold. One goat brings no more than 150 grams of down per year. For vyazki1-gokashemirogo sweaters need4-6 animals. This is just one of the indicators that clearly illustrate the value of things made of real cashmere.
Cashmere has its roots in ancient civilization during the Mahabarata period. In ancient times, cashmere shawls were valued by emperors, kings, princes, rulers and nobles. The main suppliers of cashmere down are China (a province of China called Inner Mongolia) and Mongolia. Cashmere from India (the main region is the state of Kashmir), Iran and Afghanistan also appear on the market. But this fluff is dirtier, the hair itself is thicker and darker, so the cost of such fluff is noticeably lower.
How can you tell the difference between wool and cashmere? Cashmere fiber is thinner than 15 microns (whereas human hair is 75 microns). That's why the touch of cashmere feels so great to us. Cashmere fabric is very warm, soft, light, wear-resistant and does not cause allergies.
Merino wool
Wool taken from Merino (a breed of sheep), and not just shorn, but shorn from a certain place — from the withers. At the withers, Merino wool is particularly good. This is fine wool, its thickness is less than 24 microns. In addition, Merino wool is long, white, and has excellent thermostatic and hygroscopic properties. Due to the growth characteristics (natural curl), Merino wool is elastic. Fabrics from such raw materials allow you to create light, very warm, durable, resistant to creasing, comfortable to wear products. One of the important qualities is that it does not irritate the skin. Therefore, it can be safely recommended for creating children's things.
Merino wool is more expensive than usual. Other types of fibers are rarely added to it, and not in order to improve the quality, as in other cases (its quality is impeccable), but in order to reduce the price.
Virgin Wool or New Wool
This is the name of wool that is cut, combed, or collected from a sheep or lamb during molting and not pre-treated. In other words, pure (new), unmixed, redesigned for the first time, not second-hand wool. This means that the fabric is more delicate and soft.
Mohair
The wool of Angora goats. Initially, these goats lived in the Turkish province of Ankara (Angora), where they got their name. Wool was very valuable and it was forbidden to export from the country not only wool, but also the goats themselves. After 1820, European conquerors began to export wool and these animals. They have taken root only in South America and Texas, where the climate is similar to their native one. The yarn produced from this wool was called «mohair» from the Turkish «muyhyar», which means «the best goat hair». Over time, this name stuck. Mohair is characterized by strength, light weight and warmth. It is easy to clean from dirt, well-colored and gives Shine to the fabric.
Angora
Currently, Angora refers only to rabbit down. The appearance of this type of raw material and the name is also associated with Angora goats and the ban on their export from Turkey. Attempts were constantly made to produce an analog of the real Angora. Most of all, the Chinese succeeded in this. They began to produce yarn from the fur of rabbit, and called it the «Angora». The name also stuck, and the rabbits were called «Angora». Angora wool is very fluffy, soft and warm, but has the annoying property of «peeling»,which is impossible to prevent. Therefore, Angora wool is very rarely used in its pure form, it is usually mixed with other fibers.
Alpaca
A domesticated variety of South American llama (humpless camel), bred in the high-altitude belt of Chile, Peru and Bolivia, a hybrid of the guanaco and vicuna. Alpaca wool is divided into 22 color shades: from pure white, then beige, silver, brown to black.Due to the fact that the individual fibers of Alpaca wool are long (up to 12-15cm), it does not fall off and practically does not form pellets. Alpaca wool has a silky sheen. The wool is obtained by shearing. One animal gives about 1.5 kg of wool.
Alpaca wool is one of the main exports of Peru and Chile. Attempts to acclimatize this animal in Europe and Africa ended in failure. The peculiarity of this wool is that when storing it, you can not use naphthalene, and therefore only natural remedies — lavender, tobacco and cedar-are used as an antimole for it. Products made of Alpaca wool do not lose their marketable appearance during the entire service life, which is measured in years.
Cotton
It is the absolute leader among vegetable textile raw materials. Cotton was known in India since the 7th century BC, and only after 24 centuries the production of cotton fabrics reached Europe (it began in England in 1772). The density of cotton yarn is due to the features of the threads — many of them are arranged in a spiral above each other, and when spinning, they are screwed into each other like hinges.
The main properties of cotton include hygiene, resistance to alkali (or simply — to washing); cotton «breathes» (good air flow), easily absorbs moisture. Cotton is comfortable and pleasant to wear, soft and resistant to abrasion and tear, easy to care for. Cotton is well colored and quite resistant to fading. Comparing it with other plant fibers, it can be noted that the warming effect of cotton is higher than that of flax. Cotton is stronger than wool, though less durable than linen or silk. The product is easily washed if pre-soaked.
Viscose
The very first artificial fiber obtained by man at the end of the NINETEENTH century, but still retains its significance. It is made from a natural material-cellulose, so it is the most "natural" of all chemical fibers. By changing the thickness and nature of the fibers, you can get fabrics that are very similar to natural ones-wool, cotton, silk and linen.
The main qualities of viscose: pleasant to the touch, hygroscopic (absorbs moisture well), breathable, easy to color, has a silky Shine, retains color for a long time and is not wiped. High color intensity allows you to create products in bright colors. Viscose does not accumulate static electricity. SAMOS Fashion Group models use a lining made of this material.
Membrane
Loro Piana Storm System (membrane) is a new generation of fabrics that combine the best insulation and thermal properties of wool, cashmere and other natural fibers with rain and wind protection technology. A membrane is glued to the inner side of the fabric, which simultaneously breathes and retains body heat, as well as protects against the penetration of water and wind from the outside. This combination guarantees the elegance of the Loro Piana fabric in any weather.
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