washing silk

[Lee Kushrenada]

some of you may have seen me rant about how I got this silk yarn and how its resycoled from other silk things yata yata...
so I need to wash it some how, and I was thinking that I would just let it soke in some worm water, but if there's any reason why I should not, I would like to know now rather than letter, so if any of you have anything to say about washing silk, PLEAS feel free to tell me. 3nodding
I REALLY need to wash it as it reacks of dust.  

[Catcheen]

Lee Kushrenada

some of you may have seen me rant about how I got this silk yarn and how its resycoled from other silk things yata yata...
so I need to wash it some how, and I was thinking that I would just let it soke in some worm water, but if there's any reason why I should not, I would like to know now rather than letter, so if any of you have anything to say about washing silk, PLEAS feel free to tell me. 3nodding
I REALLY need to wash it as it reacks of dust.

If I were you, I would knit whatever I'm going to make with the yarn and THEN wash it. This will make the fiber more stable and less of a mess to work with while knitting. All the instructions I found (thank you google) said to wash in cold water and dry flat. While it's drying, you can block it.  

[Lee Kushrenada]

thank you. 3nodding  

[Blue-eyes-green]

One thing to be wary of when washing silk- depending on a whole bunch of things, like the dye, the way it's spun, sun spot activity, silk can water spot like crazy, so washing it may change the color.  

[Catcheen]

Blue-eyes-green

One thing to be wary of when washing silk- depending on a whole bunch of things, like the dye, the way it's spun, sun spot activity, silk can water spot like crazy, so washing it may change the color.

Good point. This also reminded me that it will most likely grow a "halo" meaning that the itty bitty threads will stick out more prominently and create kind of a fuzzy effect. It won't be too noticable depending on how tightly or loosely your specific skein is spun.  

[Lee Kushrenada]

Catcheen

Blue-eyes-green

One thing to be wary of when washing silk- depending on a whole bunch of things, like the dye, the way it's spun, sun spot activity, silk can water spot like crazy, so washing it may change the color.

Good point. This also reminded me that it will most likely grow a "halo" meaning that the itty bitty threads will stick out more prominently and create kind of a fuzzy effect. It won't be too noticable depending on how tightly or loosely your specific skein is spun.

yes this I have found out... its not that bad though and kind of add's to the effect.  

[blubyrd]

For the most reliable info. on washing silk check this site... http://www.treenwaysilks.com/care_of_silk.html
Washing silk is safe if done properly and the silk is good quality, recycled silk is risky at best! Washing does remove a substance that causes silk to have it's stiffness, so expect it to soften even more over time. It will also shrink so is best to try a test sample and wash before making it into a project.  

[Annchen]

I've got a great silk soap without enzymes (they'll eat the silk...) but with tons of yummy oils to keep it nice. It's locally produced in a small town in Sweden so it might be difficult to find anywhere else xp

Great for silk and wool since the oils make the wool less itchy.  

[Zahra Ovaci]

One thing to be wary of with recycled silks is major color bleeding. I got a bunch of good recycled silks off ebay and made a scarf, I washed it until the water was clear and STILL had color come off on my towels!