When looking to make a luxury purchase, like that of buying a silk duvet for example, it is a good idea to educate yourself on the product first and learn what it is actually made out of.
Believe it or not, silk is not always of the premium quality you assume it to be, but this is all dependent on the type of silk. You can usually get an idea of quality based on price, but sometimes you may be wrongly overcharged for low-quality silk and not even realise before it’s too late.
To avoid this, it is strongly recommended that you can firstly distinguish between satin and silk. Please refer to one of our previous articles, “Satin vs Silk” to learn more. If you are already aware of these differences, read on to learn the different types of silk and what they mean in terms of quality.
Charmeuse
Charmeuse is likely the most commonly used and recognised silk there is on the market. Notably being one of the most lightweight silks, it is ideal for use when manufacturing the likes of shirts and dresses. If you stumble across silk sheets, they are also likely to be charmeuse as it is great for regulating temperatures thus keeping you cool in Summer and toasty in Winter.
This can be easily confused with satin, as they both share very similar qualities both with appearance and handling. However, a distinct inconsistency would be the textures slightly differ with charmeuse silk and satin, being that satin isn’t quite as smooth as the former.
Mulberry
Mulberry silk is by far the most luxurious of silk that’s available. Beyond sleek and smooth, mulberry silk is what you want to be looking out for when purchasing silk. Compared to other variations of silk, this one by far stands out as it almost glistens and it feels as good as it looks, guaranteed to glide right between your fingers.
The name comes from the diet of the specific silkworms that are bred to make this type of silk. This being a strict diet of leaves from the mulberry tree, allowing for such high-quality cocoons of silk to be produced and then be made into the material we are more familiar with.
Habutai
Traditionally woven in Japan, Habutai or “Habotai” is known to be basic plain weaves of silk that are typically used as a silk lining. However, this material was once used mainly for kimonos, it is now popularly used for shirts, lampshades and light lingerie.
This variation of silk is an inexpensive alternative to charmeuse. However, it is less durable and will likely have a shorter lifespan than other types of silk. You will usually see a lesser price tag attached to habotai products.
The name “habutai” means “feather-two-layer”, giving an idea of the texture and structure of the fabric. Often sold as standard ivory silk, habutai is easily dyed and comes in a variety of weights and thicknesses. An 8 momme is considered lightweight and 16 momme heavy.
Dupioni
Dupioni, also referred to as “douppioni” or “dupion”, is a plain weave of silk that is typically made from uneven thread reeled from numerous tangled cocoons. This method allows for tightly woven fibres, giving the silk an overall crisp texture.
Dupioni is very similar to shantung silk, however has a more irregular thread count and is a lot more coarse, thicker and heavier. Often woven with different coloured fibres to give an iridescent effect, dupioni can be woven into plaid and other intricate designs like stripes and floral patterns.
Tussar
This variant of silk goes by a lot of names: “tussar”, “sanskrit” and even “wild” silk. Tussar is produced from the offspring of several different types of moths, being sun dried and then boiled to extract the yarn. This is then woven into silk. The wild silk is a lot more textured than other silks, like that of mulberry that is cultivated, and tends to be less durable as its fibres are shorter.
Produced in countries like that of Japan, India, China and Sri Lanka, silk of this variety is valued for its rich texture and natural deep gold tones.
Visit Jasmine Silk, today!
At Jasmine Silk, only the cream of the crop is used in products. Our products will be predominantly of the mulberry silk variety with linings of other silks.
For premium silk duvets, sleepwear and accessories, look to Jasmine Silk and enjoy living in the lap of luxury.
