How to Wash and Care for Silk: A Complete Care Guide

Everything your silk actually wants on wash day — and the two ordinary laundry habits that quietly ruin it.

Silk has a reputation for being high-maintenance, and it is almost entirely undeserved. What silk asks for is not more effort than cotton but different effort — gentler, cooler, and mostly a matter of leaving out the things a washing machine does best. Once you understand why, the rules stop being a list to memorise and become obvious. So it is worth a minute on the why before the how.

Why silk needs different care

Here is the fact the care labels never explain: silk is not a fabric in the way cotton is. It is protein. Each thread is mostly fibroin, the structural protein a silkworm spins into a single continuous filament — which means the thing resting against your face at night has more in common with your own hair and skin than with anything else in the laundry basket. Treat it the way you'd treat skin, and you will not go far wrong. Two common habits break that rule, and they are the two that do nearly all the damage.

The wrong detergent

Most modern laundry liquids — the “bio” ones especially — are protein-eaters by design. They carry enzymes called proteases, added precisely to break down protein-based stains: blood, sweat, grass, egg. The trouble is that an enzyme cannot tell the difference between the stain you want gone and the fibroin you want to keep. To a protease, a silk pillowcase is simply a very large, very expensive stain. Use that detergent week after week and the fibre slowly loses its body and its glow. This is the single most common way good silk meets an early end.

The wrong pH — and heat, and sun

Silk is happiest in water that sits close to neutral, or a shade acidic. Push it the other way, into alkaline territory — where most ordinary detergents sit — and the protein begins to come apart, a slow snapping of the bonds that hold fibroin together that conservators who study ageing silk call chain scission. Heat accelerates the same unravelling, which is why cool water matters. And sunlight is the quiet third enemy: the UV that fades a curtain will yellow and weaken silk, white silk fastest of all. None of these are dramatic on any single wash. Over a year of them, they are the difference between silk that lasts and silk that dulls.

What to wash silk with

A small amount of a gentle wool-and-delicates wash is ideal. Wool, like silk, is a protein fibre, so what is formulated to be kind to one is kind to the other — no harsh enzymes, and a pH that leaves the protein alone. Two easy Australian-shelf options are Earth Choice Wool & Delicates and Ecostore Woolwash & Delicates; any gentle, pH-neutral, fragrance-free wash does the job. What to leave out matters just as much: no biological or enzyme detergent, no bleach or stain remover, no fabric softener (it coats the fibres and dulls the very sheen you paid for), and no boosters or “whitening” additives.

How to wash it

Machine wash — for pillowcases and larger pieces

Sturdier items take a gentle machine wash well. Turn the item inside out and place it in a mesh delicates bag. Choose a delicate or hand-wash cycle, cold, at no more than 30°C, with a small amount of wool-and-delicates wash and no softener. Wash silk on its own — not in a mixed load where zips and buttons can snag it. Never tumble dry.

Hand wash — for the small accessories, and to get the longest life

Fill a basin with cool water and a capful of gentle wash. Let the item drift through the water with a few soft presses of your hand — no scrubbing, no twisting, no wringing, because silk is at its weakest when wet and a hard squeeze is exactly where the fibres give. Rinse in cool water, press the excess out between your palms or in a clean towel, and lay it flat back into shape. It takes about ten minutes and asks for nothing you don't already own.

Notes for each kind of silk

Pillowcases. Either method works; hand washing extends their life most. Wash more often than feels necessary in summer — the full schedule is in how often to wash a silk pillowcase, and the pillowcase-specific walkthrough in how to wash a silk pillowcase.

Bonnets, turbans and hair wraps. These sit against the scalp and gather oil and product faster, so wash them more often than a pillowcase. Hand washing suits their shape and elastic best.

Scrunchies, eye masks and headbands. Hand-wash these small pieces — they take more movement and twisting in a machine than they should. A quick basin wash and a flat dry is all they need.

Cot sleeves. Machine-wash cold on a gentle cycle with an enzyme-free wash — and, importantly, re-check the fit every time afterwards, because fabric relaxes and Velcro tires with washing. It must sit drum-tight and flat before your baby uses it again; the method is in how to install your cot sleeve safely.

Scarves. Hand-wash gently, or dry-clean a printed or structured scarf if you'd rather not risk the colours; reshape damp and dry flat.

Drying, ironing and storing

Dry silk flat or on a rack in the shade, somewhere with a little moving air, away from heat and direct sun. It dries quickly. If it needs pressing, use a cool iron on the silk setting while the silk is still slightly damp, ideally inside out — or hover a steamer over it, which is gentler still. Store silk somewhere dry and dark; long spells in bright light will yellow it even in a cupboard with the door ajar.

What to avoid, in one place

No hot water, no tumble dryer, no direct sun. No biological or enzyme detergent, no bleach, no fabric softener, no stain remover. No wringing or twisting, and no mixed loads. Everything on that list is something a washing machine or a busy morning would happily do — which is the whole reason silk asks you to slow down for its ten minutes.

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Frequently asked questions

Can you machine wash silk?
Yes — sturdier pieces like pillowcases and cot sleeves, in a mesh bag on a cold delicate cycle with a gentle wool-and-delicates wash. Hand washing is gentler still and best for small accessories.

What detergent is safe for silk?
A gentle wool-and-delicates or pH-neutral, fragrance-free wash. Avoid “bio” and enzyme detergents — their proteases break down silk's protein — and avoid bleach and fabric softener.

Can you wash silk in hot water?
No. Heat accelerates the breakdown of the protein and can shrink or dull silk. Always use cool water, 30°C or below.

How do you dry silk?
Flat or on a rack in the shade, out of direct sun, away from heat. Never tumble dry. Sunlight yellows and weakens silk over time.

Can you iron silk?
Yes, on a cool silk setting while slightly damp, ideally inside out — or use a steamer, which is gentler.

How often should silk be washed?
It depends on the item and the season. Pillowcases and bonnets, which sit against skin and hair, need washing more often than you'd think, especially in summer.

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Our pillowcases, bonnets and turbans, scrunchies, eye masks and cot sleeves are all 22-momme, 6A-grade, OEKO-TEX® Standard 100 certified mulberry silk — made to reward exactly this kind of gentle care.

There is a certain justice in it. The fabric that has been spun by hand, and with great patience, for five thousand years asks only for a little patience back — and, given it, stays beautiful far longer than anything that promised to be easier.