How to Spot Fake Silk

With virtually everything becoming available online, it is easy for sellers to offer buyers fake versions of the products that they are selling. With silk being an expensive fabric, a lot of sellers try to pass off fake silk as genuine, and to the untrained eye, it can be difficult to distinguish real from fake. Silk is an expensive fabric, and people are coming up with ways how they can profit from selling fakes. It takes a long time for a silkworm to create silk, and it is one of the reasons why it is an expensive commodity. If you want to buy silk sleepwear– whether online or in-store, there are ways you can tell if what you are buying is the real deal.

Satin is different from silk

A lot of people confuse satin with silk, but they are two different things. Satin is not a fabric; it is actually a type of weave technique. So some sellers can take any material and incorporate the satin weave and pass the finished product as silk. If they advertise their fabrics as silky satin, it is a red flag. You can look at the label on the material, and if it says silk satin or silk, then you have the real deal.

Check the price

The price is an excellent indicator of if the garment is real or fake. Say, you are buying silk pyjama sets, and they are so far from the expected price of a set of silk sleepwear. Instead of being ecstatic about getting your hands on a cheap set, take it as a sign that it is most probably fake.

Keep a close eye on the surface

Silk’s colour is not even. It will not look as solid as a fake fabric. While real silk glimmers, artificial silk shines. When held under the light, real silk will change colour when the light angle changes. With fake silk, there is a white sheen throughout, even when you change the angles to the light. Fake silk will also look stiff on the wearer; real silk will cling to and contour the body softly.

Use your sense of touch

Try rubbing the fabric. Did it get hot to the touch? Then it is real silk. If the temperature does not change, it is fake.

Slip a ring over it

There should be no catches when you slip a silk fabric into a ring. It should slide effortlessly. On the other hand, fake silk will be harder to move through a ring.

Do the burn test

You cannot do this technique before you pay for the item. Take a few threads of the fabric and hold it over a lighter. The flame should be invisible, and it should smell like burnt hair. Real silk should stop burning as soon as you take the fire away. Fake silk will burn continuously even after removing the flame, and it will smell like burnt plastic.

The best way to ensure that you are buying genuine silk is to buy from a physical store, and not on the Internet. This way, you can scrutinize the garment and decide whether if it’s fake or real. Buy only from a reputable seller.