FASHION

Coming Soon: Cashmere Athleisure

Your fitness prayers have been answered.


Photo by Tom Munro

Attention anyone who has ever begrudgingly crawled out of a cozy sweater and into Spandex for a workout: Cashmere active wear is on the way. Two brothers out of Long Island, Danny and Roy Hakimian, have figured out a way to make cashmere water repellent and, at last, livable to work out in.

In a partnership with the cashmere yarn spinner Todd & Duncan, Roy, 33, and Danny, 47, developed a special polymer treatment that they apply to both the cashmere yarn and the knitting process to create water-resistant products that can even be washed. They’ve dubbed their line, appropriately, Active Cashmere by DanRoy.

While plans for future pieces are still in the works (including cashmere t-shirts, hoodies, and an especially attractive crewneck sweatshirt), the Hakimians collaborated with the Brooklyn boutique Bird for their first product: a beanie.

Bird + Active Cashmere Ribbed Cashmere Beanie, $155, shopbird.com.

They put the technology to the test at the store on a recent rainy night in Williamsburg. “I’ve been wearing it all day in the rain,” said an incredulous Roy, noting its dryness. The beanies fit in among the boutique’s Proenza Schouler bags, Marni ready-to-wear, and Yves Salomon fur-lined parkas, and shoppers of all stripes seemed to lap them up.

“There has been a tremendously positive reaction to the beanies since we launched them last week,” said Bird owner Jennifer Mankins. “Both men and women are buying them and it’s especially fun to see the more novelty colors such as burgundy, light blue, and pink selling across the board.”

The crowd in attendance perused, purchased, and even poured water on the beanies (a test they passed) and drilled Hakimian on when more pieces would become available.

“My main inspiration is that I’ve always just wanted to live in cashmere,” Roy said. “Same!” quipped a woman nearby.