How do I iron my silk?

Ironing silk can be tricky because of the heat involved. Permanent damage may be caused if one is not careful. Silk is best ironed when slightly damp, with the iron put on a cool setting. Below is the details steps to follow when you need to iron your silk sheets and/or sleepwear:

1. Preparing your silk
Silk is best when ironed damp in order to minimize the effects of the iron’s heat. We recommend ironing right after a wash.
– If you handwash your silk, squeeze very gently after rinsing to remove excess water from the fabric. Remember: DO NOT WRING/TWIST the silk, it may break silk threads and cause stretch/tear.
– If you use a washing machine, you may iron directly.

2. Other preprations before ironing
– Make sure the surface of your iron is clean. If your iron is stained with metal stains, you may remove them by applying a baking soda solution. DO NOT IRON if your iron is dirty or have metal stains as it may permanently ruin the silk.
– Set the iron to be either on a delicate or silk setting, or the lowest setting if there is no specific settings for silk.
– Prepare a pure cotton sheet of white or natural color and lay the sheet on the ironing board. This is to prevent coloring of the ironing board to leach onto your silk, which may cause permanent damage to your silk.

3. Ironing your silk
– Silk fabrics tend to use weaves that give a shiny surface and a dull, matte back. Always iron the backside.
– You are going to iron silk part by part. Make sure the part you are ironing is smoothed out without wrinkles.
– You may iron the silk directly if the setting is on silk, but generally we recommend using a press cloth to cover the area you are aiming to iron to prevent potential damage. A small piece of thin cotton cloth would be ideal for the press cloth in this case.
– Press the iron to the surface of the silk (or the piece of press cloth) to start ironing. Keep the iron moving to avoid local overheating which causes silk fiber deformations.
– Once you finish ironing one part of the silk, smooth out another part and move the press cloth over to start ironing until you are done.

To summarize, some points to watch out for are:
– Only iron when silk is damp.
– DO NOT WRING/TWIST silk to remove excessive water.
– Clean your iron beforehand.
– Use an undyed sheet between the ironing board and the silk.
– Iron the inside (dull side) of your silk.
– Do not leave the iron in one place for too long.

We recommend you iron your silk after every wash or two washes. Regular ironing helps preserve the natural sheen of silk and may extend shelf life of silk considerably.

How do I dry my silk?

The recommended way to dry silk is by hanging it in a place with good air circulation. Air drying silk best allows the silk to retain its shape afterwards. Avoid contact with direct sunlight, as prolonged exposure to direct sunlight can damage silk fibers as well as cause colors to fade.

Drying machines and hair dryers can also be used, however these are not recommended as they may cause permanent damage to the silk.

  • For machine drying, leave the drying machine on cool setting and tumble dry. Keep drying time as little as possible, as the friction involved may cause breakage in silk fibers or white streaks.
  • For hair dryers, make sure you use a heatless setting. Continuous heating from a hair dryer would cause brittleness in silk fiber and dull the perfect luster.

How to care for your silk bedding & clothes

Although we recommend that our pure silk product be dry cleaned, cleaning and washing silk at home is surprisingly easy if certain precautions are observed.

I.Silk Sheets and Clothing

This category includes silk pillowcases, fitted sheet, flat sheet, bed-skirt, duvet cover, sleepwear, lingerie, sleep cap and shirt.

Hand Wash At 30℃
Use lukewarm water: 30C/86F is the ideal temperature for silk to be hand-washed
No Heat
Heat ruins the fabric structure of silk
Mild Cleaning Agents
Use Special Detergent for Silk. We recommend TENESTAR as the brand of specialized silk cleaner agent for our products. Woolite and other mild detergents can also be used but not recommended.
Do Not Use Bleaches 
Avoid detergents with enzymes, bleaches, and brighteners at all cost.
Rinse with a few drops of vinegar
A few drops of distilled vinegar can help dissolve the chemical traces (e.g. sweat/soap residue) on the silk.
Rinse quickly and don’t over soak.
Do Not Tumble Dry 
Never tumble dry silk. Hang dry if possible, however, avoid direct sunlight exposure.
Cold Iron As Needed
Irons should be set on the lowest possible heat setting, and if the iron has a particular silk setting, that is even better. Moving the iron back and forth can stretch and pull the silk out of shape. The iron should never rest on any spot for too long, in case of burning silk fabric structure.

For those without the time, patience or just physically unable to hand-wash silk, our products can withstand machine washing as well. Of course, there is more risk involved, and certain precautions must be taken to minimize them.
Machine wash in lukewarm water (30°C) on most gentle cycle available.
Most washing machines should have a “delicate” setting. Some machines even have a silk setting specifically for cleaning silk.
Minimize spin time
Spinning can be very dangerous for silk fabric as the forces involved can shear weaker silk fibers.
Use protective casing
To best avoid shearing and tearing of silk fibers, it is recommended that you use some cloth casing that could let water through and yet keeps the silk fabric in one piece.

Machine-wash tends to be the most practical way to clean silk as it is fast and requires little attention, but in fact, you should be even more careful than when you hand-wash, as there are many ways the machine can tear your silk to pieces if you do not treat the wash cautiously.

II.Silk Basics

For washable duvets or pillows, we recommend machine washing. And you can follow the rules above. To keep them warm, please don’t do the washing too often. Just air in well-circulated areas 2~3 times every month (avoid direct sunlight exposure).

For those basics that couldn’t be washed, always protect them with a removable and washable cover. You can also do spot-clean with lukewarm water and hang dry after spot-cleaned. If in need of thorough cleaning, please use professional dry clean only.

Tip: For daily maintenance, simply turn your comforter over towards the end of the bed instead of after you get up and let the fresh air or the sunshine in (if your bed is near a window) for 10-20 minutes.This helps freshen your comforter considerably.

III.Silk Blanket

We recommend professional dry cleaning for silk blanket as silk blanket needs to avoid direct touch with water. And please store it in a cool, dry place.

Correct care will help your silk products will last for years without losing their quality. Learning how to wash silk in the washing machine or by hand is simple-just observe these considerations and you will enjoy your silk products for a very long time.

How to wash silk sheets?

How to wash silk sheets?

There are several different ways in which our silk products can be washed, and each has its advantages and disadvantages. We recommend hand-washing to everyone as it is the method that keeps our silk lustrous and “in-shape”, but pick whichever way that suits your needs the best.

HAND-WASH:

For silk products of any kind, hand-washing is the optimal way to clean without causing damage to the material. Proper hand-cleaning can prolong the the life of the silk as well as keep it lustrous even after long periods of usage.

Some tips for hand-washing silk include:

  • Use lukewarm water: 30C/86F is the best temperature for silk to be hand-washed in.
  • Use mild cleaning agents: We recommend TENESTAR as the brand of specialized silk cleaner agent for our products. Woolite and other mild detergents can also be used but not recommended. Avoid detergents with enzymes, bleaches and brighteners at all cost.
  • Rinse with a few drops of vinegar: A few drops of distilled vinegar can help dissolve the alkaline traces (e.g. sweat/soap residue) on the silk. Rinse quickly and don’t oversoak.

Things that should be avoided when hand-washing silk:

  • Soaking silk in water for too long: soaking silk in water for too long may cause the silk threads to unwind, causing deformation in the fabric.
  • Harsh detergents: avoid any cleaning agents with enzymes, bleach or brighteners, these will make short work of the silk fibers.
  • Twisting: Put silk on towel and roll to extract water as twisting too hard can shear silk fibers.

Hand-washing, however, can take a long time, especially if you are washing bed sheets/duvet covers. Another problem is that you need to stay focused for the duration of the wash, as leaving silk in water unattended for too long may cause deformation. Hand-washing multiple pieces of silk is no easy task and requires quite a bit of stamina to complete.

MACHINE WASH:

For those without the time, patience or just physically unable to hand-wash silk, our products can withstand machine-washing as well. Of course, there is more risks involved and certain precautions must be taken in order to minimize them.

Tips for machine washers:

  • Use the mildest cycle there is: Most washing machines should have a “delicate” setting. Some machines even have a silk setting specifically for cleaning silk. Do NOT use heavy load settings.
  • Use the shortest spin cycle: Spinning can be very dangerous for silk fabric as the forces involved can shear weaker silk fibers.
  • Use specialized silk cleaner agents: We recommend TENESTAR as the brand of specialized silk cleaner agent for our products. Woolite and other mild detergents can also be used but not recommended. Avoid detergents with enzymes, bleaches and brighteners at all cost.
  • Use protective casing: To best avoid shearing and tearing of silk fibers, it is recommended that you use some sort of cloth casing that could let water through and yet keeps the silk fabric in one piece. A cotton pillowcase or duvet cover should serve this purpose just fine.
  • Do NOT forget about your silk: Some people like to throw their load into the washing machine and leave, then forget about the wash completely. If you do this with silk, chances are the silk is going to change shape and lose lustre prematurely as the residue water can cause deformities in the fabric.

Machine-wash tends to be the most practical way to clean silk as it is fast and requires little attention, but in fact you should be even more careful than when you hand-wash, as there are many ways the machine can tear your silk to pieces if you do not treat the wash cautiously.

DRY CLEAN:

For customers who wish to clean their pillows or duvets/comforters, dry cleaning must be used to preserve the structure of the silk floss filling inside. Usually dry cleaners know how to handle your silk, but it should be noted that some dry cleaning agents are highly toxic and carcinogenic, it is recommended that you hang your silk pillow/duvet in a well-circulated area for a day or two after dry cleaning to prevent possible residue fumes harming your health.

Of course, it is also possible that your dry cleaner uses non-toxic dry cleaning agents too, so it is best if you ask before getting your items back.

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