Elegant, versatile and comfortable are the qualities of the comfort fabric silk. Nowadays ‘peace silk’ is available, which is made without harming the silk worms, so even the ones the concerned about the environment can enjoy silk. This fabric is relatively durable, but it has similar fibers as the human hair and it needs special care. Therefore, it is important to know how to take care of silk.
Here are some simple steps on how to take care of silk.
Dry cleaning
- The first care instruction for the silk items, especially pure silk is dry cleaning. For dupioni silk, china silk, crepe de chine and multi colored silks dry cleaning is the best option. For other kind of silks, dry cleaning will help in maintaining the texture of the fabric, but it will involve some risks.
- The common cleaning solutions are not suited to silk and there are chances that silk will get damaged if you place it in the same vat with rougher fabrics. To ensure that your silk is getting the proper treatments, you must always tell the dry cleaner that your garment has been made from silk and ensure that they know how to clean silk.
Hand washing
- Always remember that silk fabrics were made five thousand years ago, whereas the dry cleaning process was introduced in the 1840s. This clearly means that dry cleaning is not that necessary. Even the dupioni silk, which has a label of dry cleaning, can be hand washed if the seams are serge and you do not mind losing the fabrics color or firmness.
- If you are using low quality, silk then it will become dull or rough after you have hand washed it, better quality silk will look great and last longer. The natural coating available on the silk will last longer when you have hand washed it. The natural coating present on the silk will react well to the warm water, so hand washing will have an advantage of refreshing silk and it will give it a better drape.
- You can hand wash the silk using a mild detergent like ivory soap, shampoo that is dissolved in water and woolite. Silk tends to resist stains and dirt and therefore only a small amount of soap should be used. Just like any other natural fibers will not tolerate any abrupt changes in the temperature, so you will have to stay with one water temperature throughout the wash. Remember that you must never soak the silk in water or it will fade the dye.
- If you want to revive your fabric from alkali damage or revive the faded color, you will have to rinse the silk in water with a few drops of white vinegar. Some people will like matte finish; this is a sign for alkali damage, which will make your fabric brittle. However, the vinegar rinse will help in minimizing this. After the vinegar and wash, you must rinse the silk in cool water.
Machine wash
- Machine washing is considered as the worst option for cleaning silk and the other garments will damage the fabric. Garments that are made with the combination of fabrics or those, which are highly detailed should never be machine washed. However, if your machine states that it is safe for silk, then you may not face any serious problems washing silk.
- Before you start washing silk, make sure that there is no dirt or soap inside your machine, which can stain the silk. Keep the silk item inside a mesh bag or a pillowcase that is loosely tied. Take a small amount of mild detergent and wash the silk on gentle cycle, like wool cycle. The temperature of your machine should be 86 degree Fahrenheit. If you are going to use spin cycle then you must keep it as short as you can.
Treating stains
- A few drops of ammonia and hydrogen peroxide added in the water will help in keeping the silk bright and if you rinse the silk in white vinegar then it will help in removing yellow stains. For removing perspiration stains, you will have to dab a little ammonia dissolved in water and older perspiration stains must be removed with a solution of vinegar.
- Always remember that silk may seem strong, but the use of stronger products can cause permanent damage to silk, so you must never use bleach or any other product that has whiteners or enzymes.
Drying
- Even if you do machine wash on your silk fabrics, you must never use the machine dryer. The dryer will create friction and the lack of humidity will cause the fabric to damage. Instead, you can take a towel and roll your silk fabric in that and gently squeeze the water out. Always remember that you must never wring the silk.
- Once the water is out, you can leave the finer silk to dry, the coarser varieties like bourette should always be dried on a flat surface. Remember that you must keep your garments away from the heat sources or from direct sunlight; both of these things can turn your silk yellow.
Ironing
- Keep in mind that, you will have to iron your silk when it is still damp and not when completely dry. If the fabric has dried, dampen it a little with some water from a spritzer bottle before you iron it. To avoid any kind of damage, you must turn the fabric inside out and always iron on the reverse side on an iron board covered with cotton fabric. Always use a low setting in the iron and never use steam, because that can leave watermarks. Make sure that you do not apply pressure on the seams of your garment.
Storage
- For a long-term storage, keep the silk covered in cotton pillowcases or any other material through which silk can breathe. Never use plastic, this will trap the moisture and will cause mildew and moisture. Silk is a favorite fabric for moths, so make sure that you store cedar chips or balls to keep the bugs away.
Silk is considered as a luxury fabric, but caring for it does not cost much in terms of time or money. Care for your silk garments in the proper way and they will keep their original softness and sheen for years.
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