KNOWLEDGE OF SILK FABRIC

Possibly the prettiest, smoothest, and shiniest material ever.

Silk is thousands of years old and is still considered a very valuable luxury fabric. After all these years, the method of silk production has not changed much.

Methods of Production Despite advances in technology, silk production is still a labor-intensive process and involves a lot of effort.

What Is Silk Made Of?

Although a wide variety of insects are now used to produce silk, the most commonly used species are the larvae of Bombyx mori – (the caterpillar of the domestic silk moth). . . . . This exceptional silkworm produces the most sought-after material with many exceptional properties.

Although silk is shiny and lightweight, it is also very strong, with silk filaments that are stronger than comparable steel filaments.

HOW IS SILK MADE?

Here is a step-by-step guide to the fascinating process in which silk is produced.

1) sericulture

The term is used to describe the process of collecting silkworms and collecting cocoon bite materials.

Female silk moths lay about 300 - 500 eggs at a time. These eggs eventually hatch into silkworms, which are reared in a controlled environment until they hatch into larvae (caterpillars).

Silkworms consistently feed on large amounts of mulberry leaves to stimulate growth. It takes about 6 weeks to grow to full capacity (about 3 inches). At this point they stop feeding and start moving upwards - only then are they ready to turn their chrysalis.

Attached to a sturdy frame or tree, the silkworm starts spinning its silk cocoon in a figure-of-eight motion by rotating its body about 300,000 times—a process that takes about 3 to 8 days. Each silkworm produces only one strand of silk, about 100 meters long, held together by a natural latex called sericin.

Did you know? It takes around 2,500 silkworms to produce one pound of raw silk.

2) THREAD ATTRACTION

After spinning its cocoon, the silkworm is finally trapped inside and it is time to release the silk thread.

The cocoon is placed in boiling water to soften and dissolve the juices that hold the cocoon together. This is an important step in the silk production process as it ensures that the continuity of each thread is not damaged.

Each thread is then carefully unwound from the cocoon into separate long threads, which are then wound into coils. Some sericin may remain in the yarn to protect the fiber during processing, but this is usually washed with soap and boiling water.

3) DYEING

After the silk thread has been washed and stripped of glue, it is bleached and dried before the dyeing process begins.

With traditional silk dyeing techniques, the dye is extracted from natural resources found in the environment, such as the fruit or leaves of the indigo plant. The thread is gathered in a bundle, soaked in hot indigo leaves and a pot of water. This process will happen several times over several days to ensure the correct color tone and quality.

But this traditional method of dyeing has been lost in the commercial production of silk. Advances in technology have led manufacturers to use different dyes, such as acid dyes or reactive dyes. It offers a large selection of colors and patterns to meet the most diverse demands.

That said, the general idea behind the technique is the same as when silk is dipped in a dye bath to absorb the dye. The silk may be placed in a two-cylinder bath or in a circular mold submerged in the bath.

In many cases, this will be one of the last steps in the process as manufacturers now generally prefer piece by piece to reduce waste. By having plain white stock ready to be painted, it eliminates the need to have more stock in a particular color that cannot be ordered and is therefore never used.

Here at Biddle Sawyer Silks, we stock our silks in bulk in a variety of colors to ensure prompt service with next-day delivery for silks we already have in stock. We also work with customers who provide their own color palettes and can match their samples via lap dip.

4) SPINNING

Traditional spinning wheels have always been an integral part of the production process and the roots that have always been there. Although the industrial processes involved can now slowly spin, the boots have all the functions of the classic spinning wheel.

The spinning process ensures that the colored fibers are unrolled on the spool so that they lie flat, ready for the weaving process. This can be done in a variety of ways from hand spinning to ring spinning and hub spinning.

5) WEAVING

Weaving is the process of gathering the last pieces of silk together. There are many different ways to weave silk - satin weave, plain weave, and open weave are the most common, and the final result of the silk depends on the type of weave.

Typically, weaving involves putting in two sets of threads so that they stick together to form a strong, uniform piece of fabric. The threads are woven at right angles to each other and the two adjacent angles are called warp and weft. The warp extends up and down the fabric and the weft threads emerge through them.

6) PRINTING

If the silk cut requires a specific pattern or design, it must be printed after pre-curing. This can be done in two different ways: digital printing or screen printing.

Digital silk printing uses specially designed textile printers, using ink to transfer hand-drawn or digitally produced artwork onto fabric.
Screen printing is the traditional, more practical way of producing the same result, although in some cases a bolder, more vibrant look can be achieved by using a thicker layer of ink.

7) FINISHING

Silk must be finished to be considered ready to use. Finishing a piece of silk gives that very lustrous sheen for which it is so famous, and this can achieve the desired look and feel.
Silk finishing can be achieved in many ways, especially by applying various chemical treatments that can add many valuable properties including flame resistance and wrinkle resistance.