A semi pashmina stole is one of the most useful things a woman can carry on a flight. It is light enough to disappear into a cabin bag, warm enough for an air-conditioned cabin, and soft enough to serve as a wrap, a blanket or a scarf when you land. This note sets out how to pack it, wear it in the air and care for it afterwards. The wider picture of the line is in our complete guide to pashmina shawls and stoles for women.
Why a stole suits the journey
Cabins run cool, and they run cooler on night flights and in the hours before landing. Many travellers from the Gulf feel this most acutely, because they leave a warm climate and walk into a cabin kept at a low temperature for hours. A Kashmiri semi pashmina stole answers this without adding bulk. It folds small, it carries no stiff structure, and it can be worn open over the shoulders, wrapped close around the neck or laid across the lap.
It also does a quieter job. A stole lets you adjust to the place you are travelling to. Covered shoulders in a cool cabin become a modest wrap on arrival, and the same cloth can finish an outfit at a hotel dinner that evening. One stole, packed well, covers all of these moments.
Choosing the stole for a trip
Choose a ground colour that forgives the road. A pale ground shows a mark more readily than a mid-tone, and a very dark ground shows lint. Neither is a reason to avoid them, but it is worth knowing before you pack.
The Safa Kashmiri semi pashmina stole has a pale stone ground, tone on tone, with small pastel floral sprays in pink and blue along the edges. It is quiet enough to sit under almost any travelling outfit. The Najma stole has a cream ground with a tone-on-tone floral pattern and scattered pastel sprays in pink and blue. Both pair easily with the neutral colours most people wear on a flight.
If you prefer a stole that makes a statement on arrival, the Ghazal stole has an ivory ground with bold paisley in black, teal and coral, pink rosettes and a striped end. It is the one to pack when you want the stole to be the colour in an otherwise plain outfit. Availability changes, so check the shawls and stoles collection for what is in stock today. Each product page lists the exact colours.
Packing it flat
The care instruction for the line applies on the road as it does at home. Store folded, flat, and away from direct light. In a suitcase, that means a few simple habits.
- Fold the stole in thirds along its length, then in half, keeping the folds soft and loose.
- Wrap it in a sheet of clean tissue paper, or place it in a cotton bag. Avoid plastic, which holds moisture.
- Lay it on top of your other clothes, not at the bottom of the case where it will take the weight of everything else.
- Keep it away from zips, buckles and the rough edges of shoes.
Fold it along a slightly different line each time you pack it. A crease that sits in the same place for months can set into the cloth. If a crease does appear, lay the stole flat for a day and let it rest. Do not iron it and do not steam it.
Carry it on, do not check it
The stole belongs in the cabin bag. It is the piece you will want during the flight, and a checked case can be held in a hold that is cold, damp or crushed under other luggage. Keep it in an outer pocket or on top of the bag so that you can reach it without unpacking.
It is useful to keep the stole in its cotton bag until you need it. Airport seating, trays and the floor of a security tray are not clean surfaces, and a bag keeps the cloth away from all of them.
Wearing it in the cabin
A stole behaves differently in a narrow seat than it does at a table. Three ways of wearing it work well on a flight.
The first is the open drape, with the stole resting over both shoulders and the ends hanging loose in front. It is the lightest option and the easiest to take off if the cabin warms.
The second is the single loose wrap, with one end thrown back over the opposite shoulder. It stays in place when you lean forward and keeps the neck covered.
The third is the lap cover. Unfold the stole fully and spread it across your knees. It is the best choice for a long sleep, because it does not press on the neck and does not rub against the seat back.
Our guide to how to wear a pashmina stole sets out more ways of draping the cloth, and several of them suit a journey. Whichever you choose, avoid wearing the stole under a tight seat belt for hours. Friction at the shoulder and lap is where soft cloth roughens first.
Perfume and the airport
Airports are filled with fragrance, and the testers on the shelves are the quickest way to mark a stole. Never spray a tester near the cloth, and take care when someone beside you does. If you buy perfume in the terminal, let it dry on your skin before you put the stole back on. Oils and alcohol can leave a faint ring on fine fibres and dull the finish.
The same rule applies to scent in a hotel room or a car. Perfume goes on first, dries on the skin, and the stole goes on afterwards. The reasoning is set out in more detail in our note on caring for a Kashmiri semi pashmina shawl.
Hotels, humidity and airing on arrival
When you reach the hotel, take the stole out of the case at once. A day or more folded in a suitcase leaves the cloth a little flat, and some travel creases are almost certain. Shake it out gently, then hang it loosely over the back of a chair, away from the window and away from the air-conditioning vent. Leave it for an hour or two before wearing it.
Do not hang it in a bathroom where a shower has been running. Steam is heat and moisture together, which is exactly what fine fibres dislike. If the room is humid, as coastal hotels often are, keep the stole in its cotton bag in a drawer between wearings. Do not leave it on a radiator, a heater or a hairdryer shelf.
When you are ready to leave, refold it along a fresh line, wrap it in tissue and return it to the bag.
Small accidents on the road
Travel brings drinks, trays and sudden turbulence. If something lands on the stole, lift it off with a clean white cloth by pressing gently. Do not rub, because rubbing drives liquid deeper and roughens the surface. Then stop. Do not add water, soap or stain remover. Fold the stole in a clean bag and take it to a dry cleaner when you are home, telling them what spilled and when.
After you return
Every Kashmiri semi pashmina stole in the line is dry clean only. A single trip does not always call for it, but a long journey, a spill, smoke exposure or several days in a humid climate does. When you hand the stole to your cleaner, ask that it is not pressed hard, that any edges are left untrimmed, and that it comes back folded flat and not hung.
If no cleaning is needed, air the stole for an hour in a room with moving air and put it away folded flat, in a cotton bag, in a cool dry cupboard. The same principles apply to a stole that has stayed at home. Our care note covers moths, storage and pilling in full.
Questions buyers ask
Can I put the stole in my checked luggage?
It is better in the cabin bag. It is the piece you will want in the air, and the cabin is a gentler place for it than a hold.
How do I remove creases from a long journey?
Let the stole rest. Hang it loosely over a chair or lay it flat for a day, and most creases relax by themselves. If one stays, ask your dry cleaner. Do not iron or steam it.
Is it too warm for a flight from the Gulf?
No. The cabin is cool for the whole of the journey, and a light wrap that comes off in a moment is more useful than a heavy layer. You can fold it small as soon as you no longer need it.
Which colour travels best?
A mid-tone or pale neutral ground is easiest to wear with a travelling outfit. A bolder stole is better kept for the evening you arrive.
Choosing a stole to travel with
The full range of Kashmiri semi pashmina shawls and stoles is on the shawls and stoles collection. Read each description for its exact ground and pattern, choose a colour that suits the clothes you already pack, and keep it in your cabin bag as the first thing you reach for. A good travelling stole is the one you stop thinking about, because it is always there when the cabin turns cold.