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Qiviut
On one of my quests for the perfect bun for the cruise ship, I came across the Musk ox
The Musk ox is an animal that is not so genetically related to cattle, but more to sheep and goats. The undercoat of Musk oxen, also called Qiviut, is one of the best and rarest natural fibers available. The fiber comes from Alaska, the yarn from Quebec (Canada) and is dyed by hand.
The wool of the Musk ox is eight times warmer than sheep wool based on their weight. It is also softer, smoother and cuddly than the undercoat of cashmere goats. The Musk ox is not shaved, but combed. The undercoat is combed by hand and processed into qiviut products of extremely high quality.
Qiviut means fluff and refers to the inner, insulating fur, the winter fur of the Musk ox. Thanks to this coat, the animals themselves do not suffer from polar storms and extreme minus temperatures.
Musk’s hair is a very rare and very special natural product, because the extraction and processing of Qiviut is about 8 times more expensive than comparable natural fibers. The volume of the quiviut fiber is approximately 60% of the smallest air ducts. This explains the effect of the thermal insulation, which is comparable to no other fiber. Worldwide only about 5-6 tons of musk ox hair is available every year. Cashmere is much more common with 350,000 tons.
Exclusive musk ox hair products will remain a rarity in the future. It is not for nothing that Qiviut is also called the Arctic gold. This material is hard to describe, you have to feel it. It is claimed that when you hold Musk wool in your hands, even the high-quality cashmere wool no longer feels soft enough.
Soon I will feel, see and process it.
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