Silk has long been coveted as a luxurious and soft fabric. Because of these qualities, it is also one of the most expensive. Making silk is labour intensive, and despite advances in fabric technologies, the way silk is produced has changed little over the years.
What is silk made of?
Silk is made from insect larvae – most frequently, the larvae of the silk moth caterpillar – which are called silkworms. Silkworms produce this incredible material which is lightweight but strong. In fact, piece for piece, silk is actually stronger than steel according to science experts ZDNet and can be turned into all kinds of different items.
Of course, DK yarn is widely known as a fantastic product for creating all kinds of wonderful garments and items for the home. Yarns such as those at https://www.woolcouturecompany.com/collections/dk-yarn come in such a wide variety of colours and textures that there is always a perfect choice out there, no matter what you have in mind for your next creation.
What is the process for making silk?
Silkworms reach their full size at 6 weeks of age, and begin to make their cocoon out of one single – but very long – strand of silk, spinning their body thousands of times to create their cocoon. The silk produced in this way can measure up to 100 metres in length.
At this point, the silk is extracted from the cocoon by human hands and wound carefully around a reel. This can then be bleached and dyed in any colour of the rainbow using a traditional dye bath.
The spinning process transforms the natural fibres and threads them onto a bobbin ready for weaving. Weaving is one of the last steps of the process, and turns the silk into a satin or plain weave ready for the garment to take shape.
‘Finishing’, as the name would suggest, is the last step in the silk-making process. This chemical process gives silk that highly sought-after luxury sheen and delicious feel which makes it so desirable as a fabric across the world both for clothing and home furnishings.
