LAKE WENDELL, Minnesota (CNM) -- At the Lake Wendell Mercantile, shoppers are buying pashmina shawls in every color from heather gray to what the store calls "millennium mauve." The shop has reordered five times since October.

"It is warm, it is soft, it goes with everything," said store owner Bev Lindahl. "And you can wear it to church, a party or the hardware store. In Minnesota, that is important."

Fashion writers say the shawl has become the default holiday gift for women. Counterfeits are also flooding the market. "If it costs $10 and it sparks when you take it off, it is probably not pashmina," Lindahl said.