How to Take Care of Silk Scarf? How to Wash and Store It?
Why Silk?
Along with a tender texture that magically reflects our femininity, silk is one of the strongest natural fabrics in the world. And if we take proper care of this material, it can stay beautiful and shiny for decades, and be passed through the generations.
Let’s talk about why it even makes sense to purchase so expensive garments and accessories that are made of natural silk.
I am a big fan of creating a more sustainable life and culture. And, obviously, any natural material is less harmful for the planet than chemically created one. Even if manufacturers sometimes are using not the best additives to these natural materials to give them more aesthetics and durability, still, it is the natural fabric in the end. Production of the originally synthetic items obviously creates pollution, unless factories up-circle existing materials. This is the main plus of the silk items in my opinion.
The second benefit - is the feeling that silk delivers to us, when we touch and wear it.
What can be more fulfilling, than realizing how beautiful and special You are, when you are in silks. For me, personally, wearing silk gives a self-esteem boost, feeling of status, strength, and confidence of my personality (because I’m in a luxurious item) and, as an addition, realizing that I’m even more beautiful in this item. *I know I'm regardlessly beautiful woman, but sometimes I need a reminder of it. And the touch of silk gives it to me right away. Hope you have your own tricks to feel more confident, when you need it.
These are the main pros of silk, in my vision.
How to Clean Silk?
As manufacturers recomend dry cleaning, it’s not only one option that we have. Hand washing can be a great solution. Even if it’s sounds more dangourus idea than to trust prifessionals to do dry clean, in fact, sometimes the chemicles that cleaning companies use can be too harsh on silk and your items may lose the shinines and durability.
As the manufacturers recommend dry cleaning, it’s not only the one option that we have. Hand washing can be a great solution. Even if it sounds as a more dangerous idea, than to trust professionals to do dry cleaning, in fact, sometimes the chemicals that dry-cleaning companies use can be too harsh on silks, and your items may lose their shininess and durability.
Let’s talk about the Hand Wash of the Silk.
*You can hand wash the silk not only for cleaning purposes, but also to get rid of the deep wrinkles that do not disappear with ironing. You don't need to use soap/detergent for this purpose.
*I will also share some tricks that work for me and my customers.
These are the main steps of cleaning:
Choose Soap. You can clean it just with water. Using silk detergent is the best option. Or prepare a natural, chemical and dye-free soap, lingerie detergent or other delicate detergent that you trust. Never use any stain removers, dishwashing soaps, or regular detergents and, of course, bleach.
Prepare your station. Remove all the jewelry from your hands, and make sure there’s nothing sharp, pocky, scratchy on your skin, nails, manicure. Prepare a clean cotton bud or piece of tender fabric if you prefere cleaning with it. Your sink should be perfectly clean as well.
Check if your silk is colorfast on the corner of your item with a couple drops of water. KW Scarves are 100% colorfast and the dyes will never bleed from them.
Pre-treat stains if needed. The best way to remove the stain is to do it right after you notice it, as soon as possible, before it will dry and settle into the fabric. Place your item on a towel or carefully hold it above the sink. Start gently rubbing the stains from the backside, then move to the frontside. Clean it with cool water or use a little bit of soap/detergent you prepared.
Washing. Fill the sink with cool water and add detergent if needed. Never wring your scarf. Never. Swirl it and softly play with the fabric in your hands under the water for 3-5 minutes. Be sure the entire scarf is submerged. Once it’s clean, remove it from the sink. Dump the water from the silk.
Rinsing. Fill the sink with cool water and place your scarf. Repeat the swirling motion for 1-3 minutes. If you used detergent while washing, empty the sink one more time and fill it with clean water. Swirl it again for a couple of minutes. Make sure that there’s no detergian on the item, hold it in your hands above the sink and let the water drain. Or you can hang it for 3-5 minutes above the sink/bathtub. Never use clothespins for silks. Never place it on sharp surfaces. It will cause permanent damage. Wash one scarf at a time. Do not use the same water for two or more scarves.
Drying. Dry the item horizontally, on the towel, in the shade. You can gently press the scarf with your hands with a second towel on top, for a couple of minutes, to help drying.
Ironing. After the item is completely dry, iron it with a clean, dry iron on a clean iron board or any slightly soft clean surface. No steaming or sparying with water. Adjust your iron temperature to a silk setting. You can use soft cloth with fine texture in between your scarf and the iron. It is a classical method for drying and ironing silk items.
My Method. I prefer more risky but much more efficient method for my personal silk items. After hanging the scarf above the sink/bathtub for 5-10 minutes I iron it. I place the dump scarf horizontally on the smooth, a little bit soft surface (ironing table or bed with cotton bedsheets), being sure my surface and iron are dry and lean. I iron the scarf slowly, at very low temperature, without stretching/wrinkling it. Maximum temperature for silks on most of the irons is 130-140°C. I start with a temperature 50-70°C, and then I slowly increase it till 140°C, as the scarf will be drying. A lot of steam is coming out of the fabric. I iron it slowly, softly, I do not stop/leave iron on the fabric. I start from backside. This method helps me to imminently dry the item and give it an original shape, without dealing with wrinkles and stretched areas if the item would be drying naturally.
How to Store Silk Scarves?
Store them in a dark, dry, cool place. Direct sunlight can fade the colours with years. Humid air can also damage the fabric with the time. Keep a dehumidifying agent near your scarves if needed. As moths are attracted to silk and can eat it, be sure you don’t have moths at your place. Store scarves folded of hanging on the soft hangers to reduce wrinkling.
That’s it.
Enjoy your luxurious garments and accessories!
With love, Kristina.