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Artificial silk has come a long way since the conception of rayon in the early 20th century, and in the modern day, real and fake silk can be very difficult to distinguish to an untrained person.
Steps
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Do a Touch test. This is a quick spot test that one can do especially before buying anything made from silk. The idea is to rub the silk with your hands. If you feel warmth on rubbing it, it's real. With artificial or synthetic silk, it is impossible to experience warmth on rubbing. [1] X Research source
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Perform a Wedding Ring Test. If the silk that you are planning to buy is not very heavy, this test is perfect! Genuine silk of lower ply can be easily threaded and pulled through a wedding ring because silk is naturally flexible and smooth. On the other hand, artificial silks would scrunch up and would be impossible to pull through.Advertisement
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Consider the price. Of course, genuine silk is always significantly costlier than the synthetic ones. Sometimes the synthetic silk is priced much higher and looks like silk to an untrained eye but mostly low price is a very good indication of its being fake.
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Examine the Lustre of the material. Silk is especially known for its lustre. The lustre is usually because of the combination of threads which gives a particular sheen to the material. The colour on the surface appears to change as the angle of the light changes. Artificial silks, however, gives a white sheen no matter what the angle of light falling on it.]
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Look at the Weave. Hand woven silk boasts of uniqueness. There are minor variations in the evenness of the texture which is quite noticeable. Machine woven silks look perfect.
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See if you can perform a Burn Test. This is perhaps the best and most definitive test to find genuine silk. You can take a few threads from the material and burn it with a flame. Genuine silk burns with smell of burnt hair. When you burn the edge of real silk fabric, the flame is invisible and it will stop burning as soon as the flame is removed. The ash produced hence, is black, crispy and brittle. It turns to powder when twisted in fingers. With the artificial silk, it is quite the opposite. When synthetic silk is burnt, there is a flame and smell of plastic. No ash is produced. Needless to say, you might need to exercise caution with this step, due to its inherently dangerous nature.EXPERT TIPProfessional Tailor & Business OwnerShaelynn Haning is a Tailor & Business Owner based in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Shaelynn is the founder of the highest-rated and most-reviewed alterations and tailoring service in Oklahoma, Tallgrass Tailor, employing a team of skilled craftsmen and women from across the country and the world. Shaelynn is a member of the State of Oklahoma Education Careers and Technologies Board and a member of both the Custom Tailors and Designers Association and the Association of Sewing and Design Professionals. She is the host of The Sew Show with Shae, an entertaining and educational sewing channel posting weekly videos on YouTube. Shaelynn earned her BS in Apparel Design and Product Development from Marist College.
Silk burns with a hair-like smell in a burn test. To test if silk is real, do the burn test. Natural fibers like silk burn and smell like burnt hair. Synthetics melt instead, revealing their plastic/petroleum origin. The burn test works great for identifying real silk.
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If you really need to know, consider a Chemical Test. Real silk dissolves in bleach, while fake silk does not.
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QuestionI received a large swath of fabric, but I have no idea what it's made of or what to do with it. Where can I take it for evaluation?Community AnswerI would suggest taking it to a tailor or cloth expert. They will tell you the exact material(s) and give you some suggestions on what to do with it.
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Warnings
- You should have instant access to water, use a sink or go outside, for safety, while doing the burn test.Thanks
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Things You'll Need
- The silk product you will be using to perform the test
- Lighter (for the burn test)
- A pair of clipping scissors or tweezers
Expert Interview
Thanks for reading our article! If you’d like to learn more about fabric, check out our in-depth interview with Shaelynn Haning .
References
About This Article
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Reader Success Stories
- "I have a beautiful embroidered length of cloth from India which I recently posted for sale, and I was asked if it is real silk. Thank you for this article. It is a starting point for me to test for authenticity." ..." more
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"I have a beautiful embroidered length of cloth from India which I recently posted for sale, and I was asked if it is real silk. Thank you for this article. It is a starting point for me to test for authenticity."
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"I couldn't really feel warmth, but it wasn't cool. Ring test worked, but was a garment with lots of French seams, so it stopped at seams For me, the burn test was it! Smelled like burning hair!"
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"I appreciate this article because I deal a lot with silk and it is good to know of an easy test. Thank you so much for taking the time to put it together."
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"Very informative, but written in a slightly lighthearted way. Exactly what I was looking for. The burning test is extremely helpful. Thanks!"
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"You have a well-detailed and easy to follow list of answers for people to find their answers about silk. Thank you."
