Mysteries on Silk, Answered

What mulberry silk actually is, how to tell whether you are getting real silk or satin, and how to choose the product you will be glad you bought.

Silk is one of the oldest materials we still make by hand, and also one of the most misunderstood. Shopping for it can feel like guesswork, partly because a lot of sellers lean on soft words like "silky" and leave the real details out. We would rather do the opposite. Below are the questions we hear most, answered plainly, so you can read any label, ours or anyone else's, and know what you are looking at.

 

What is real mulberry silk?

Mulberry silk is silk made by silkworms raised on a diet of mulberry leaves. Each thread is spun by a single silkworm from its cocoon, in one long, continuous strand. That single-strand structure is what gives mulberry silk its evenness, its softness, and its quiet strength, and it is why mulberry silk is considered the most consistent silk you can buy. When a label simply says "silk" with no further detail, it may still be silk, but mulberry is the word that tells you where it sits on the quality ladder.

 

What does "momme" mean?

Momme, said like "mummy," is the traditional way silk weight is measured. A higher momme means more silk was woven into the same amount of fabric, so the cloth is denser, a little heavier in the hand, and generally more durable. Our pillowcases, eye masks, and scrunchies are 22 momme, a weight chosen because it feels substantial against your skin and holds up well to regular washing.

Higher is not automatically better for every use. Very high momme silk is wonderful for bedding, where you want weight and longevity, but it can feel stiff for something like a scarf, where drape matters more than heft. The right momme depends on what the piece is for. What matters most is that a seller tells you the number at all. A brand that lists momme is a brand that knows its material.

 

What is Grade 6A silk?

Grade is a measure of the raw silk thread itself, based on how long, uniform, and clean the strands are before they are woven. 6A refers to the top of the commonly used grading scale, meaning long, even threads with few breaks, which resist pilling and hold their finish over time. All of our silk is Grade 6A. Grading is an industry convention rather than a single governed standard, so we treat it as one honest signal among several, alongside momme, fiber content, and certification, rather than a badge that stands on its own.

 

Silk or satin: what is the difference?

This is the mix-up behind most "is it real" confusion, and it is a fair one. Silk is a fiber. Satin is a weave. You can weave satin out of silk, or out of polyester, or out of nylon, which is why a polyester pillowcase can honestly be called "satin" and still have nothing to do with silk. So "satin" on a label tells you how the cloth was woven, not what it is made of. The word to look for is the fiber: silk, and ideally mulberry silk. If a product is described only by its weave or its feel, "satin," "silky," "silk touch," that phrasing is usually doing the work of avoiding the word silk on its own.

 

How can I recognize good silk when I am shopping?

You can learn a lot before anything reaches your hands, and a little more once it does.

On the label and the product page, look for the things a confident seller states plainly: the fiber content in real terms, the word mulberry, a momme number, a silk grade, and an independent safety certification. Vague, feelings-based language in place of specifics is the main thing to notice. 

In person, silk carries a soft luster that shifts gently as it moves, rather than a flat, mirror-bright shine. It feels smooth on the face of the cloth and still soft, if slightly quieter, on the reverse, where many synthetics turn slick or a little plasticky.

 

What about the burn test and the ring test?

The burn test is real science, not folklore. Silk is a protein fiber, close cousin to hair, so a stray thread burns slowly, curls, leaves a soft ash, and smells faintly of burnt hair, while most synthetics melt into a hard bead and smell like plastic. It works, but it destroys whatever you test, so it is a curiosity more than a shopping tool. Please do not take a flame to something you have already bought and want to keep.

The ring test, the idea that real silk will slide smoothly through a ring, is far less reliable. A light scarf might pass and a heavier, denser silk might not, and plenty of synthetics slip through just fine. We would not decide anything based on it. Clear fiber content and a real certification tell you more than either test ever could.

 

What is OEKO-TEX certification?

OEKO-TEX® Standard 100 is an independent certification that a textile has been tested and found free of a long list of substances that could be harmful to skin. It is not a marketing sticker a brand can simply print. The testing is done by accredited institutes, and it applies through the stages of production, which is why it is a meaningful signal of a clean, safe finished product. Every SILKAVA silk product is certified under OEKO-TEX® Standard 100, and we share the certificate details openly rather than asking you to take our word for it.

 

Why does silk vary so much in price?

Because a few real things sit behind the number. Grade and momme both cost money, since better thread and denser weaving take more raw silk and more careful work. Construction matters too, whether edges are finished by hand, whether trims and elastics are quality, whether the piece is built to last a season or a decade. And design carries value of its own. A very low price for silk is worth a second look, not only because some of them aren't real silk, but also because something has usually been quietly removed to reach it, often the grade, the weight, or the safety testing you cannot see in a photo. 

 

What does SILKAVA share about its silk?

Everything we would want to know as a buyer. Our pieces are Grade 6A mulberry silk, our pillowcases, eye masks, and scrunchies are 22 momme, and our silk is certified under OEKO-TEX® Standard 100, Certificate No. 21.HCN.68112. Every piece carries its fiber content and RN 177014 so you can trace it back to us. Our silk is designed in Chicago and made in Suzhou, a region that has woven silk for centuries, and we are glad to answer anything a label cannot.

 

How do I take care of it?

Gently, and not often. Cool water, a soft touch, shade, and no dryer will carry almost any silk a long way. We have written the full method, piece by piece, in our care guide, so your silk keeps its color and its hand for years. Check out our Care Guide page to learn more!