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Silk is the only natural fiber that comes in filament form. The look and appearance of silk may vary due to the silk worm production, weave and finish used in manufacture.

The following silk fabrics and yarns may vary in appearance but usually be wetcleaned.

1. Cultivated silk. Smooth silk yarn produced when the silk worm is fed mulberry leaves.

2. Douppioni silk. Two silk worms spin an irregular and uneven yarn.

3. Silk suede. A silk fabric with a soft nap which is created by a sand washing process used in manufacture.

4. Crepe de Chine. A silk fabric woven with twisted yarns resulting in a slightly crinkled and lustrous fabric.

5. Jacquard silk. A process of weaving which creates patterns on the fabric.

6. Silk Charmeuse. A satin weave silk with a soft hand and texture. It has a dull back due to the weave construction.

7. China silk. A soft lightweight and smooth plain weave silk.

8. Pongee. A silk fabric woven with thick and thin yarns and has a soft textured surface.

Silk is often blended with other fibers but usually still can be wetcleaned.

1. Silk Batiste. A soft, lustrous fabric made of silk and cotton.

2. Bengal silk. Composed of wild silk and cotton, usually used for women’s dress fabrics.

3. Silk and polyester. This blend gives the silk more crease and wrinkle resistance.

There are some silk fabrics that cannot be wetcleaned due to limitations of fabric construction, finish and weave.

1. Silk velvet. This weave construction produces a third set of silk pile yarns. The luster of the fabric is created by the lay of the pile yarns. Wetcleaning will distort the pile making correction impossible.

2. Silk matte jersey. This knit fabric is created by using high twist silk yarns and a water soluble sizing. Contact with water will cause the yarn to shrink and the sizing will be removed creating a shrunk bodiless and distorted fabric.

3. Bias cut sheer silk. A bias cut fabric is a weave cut at an angle. Silk chiffon in a bias cut construction is subject to distortion in wetcleaning.

4. Silk crepe. Tightly twisted silk yarns create a crepe fabric with a rough texture. Water causes the yarn to shrink and distort.

5. Silk fabrics with lining and padding. When silk fabrics are lined and padded such as in suits, jackets and skirts, wetcleaning is not desirable. Refinishing of the garment is too time consuming to make wetcleaning a profitable process.

6. Silk gowns with trimming. Heavily trimmed gowns with beading makes refinishing a time consuming operation since hand finishing is needed.

7. Color problems. Test deep, dark and vivid colors for fugitive and non fast dyes.

In order to obtain the best results when wetcleaning silk, it is best to use an acid-based cationic detergent. The cationic detergent has a positive anionic charge and tends to stay with the fabric, giving it a softer feel.

The cationic detergent protects the fabric from mechanical action and reduces wrinkling by lubricating the fabric. The acid nature of the detergent tends to stabilize the dye and prevent color loss.

Use softening agents in the rinse cycle. Softening agents are usually nonionic-based and can be used in conjunction with cationic detergents. This gives the fabric a soft lustrous look and reduces wrinkling during drying.

Dry silk in medium heat for about five minutes or less to achieve 90 percent dry. This means that the seams are slightly damp with the rest of the fabric feeling dry. Hanging silks to dry or over drying produces more wrinkles.

The safest machines to wetclean silks in are front loaders with a silk or gentle cycle.

Silks should be pre-spotted before wetcleaning. When pre-spotting, use nonionic detergents. The use of detergents with an anionic base will break down and produce rings when wetcleaned with a cationic detergent. Check with your chemical suppliers to find out which brand of prepared formulas or lubricants that are nonionic based.

Avoid using prepared formulas with an alkaline base. This can produce color loss on most silks. Use enzyme based agents for safe removal of protein stains.

Tannin stains

Acid-based tannin stain removal is usually safe. As was previously mentioned use a formulation that contains a nonionic lubricant.

Use a neutral base nonionic lubricant for dryside stains. Some nonionic lubricants may be alkaline based so check with the manufacturer before use. Nonionic lubricants are usually more aggressive on silk dyes so test deep, dark and vivid colors before use.

If the silk fabric contains a large amount of dryside stains, it may be safer to dryclean the garment instead of wetcleaning.