The Silk Guide

Start with the fibre

Five short readings on what silk is and how it behaves. Each stands on its own, and each answers a question that buyers actually send us.

Buyer guides

Five practical guides for the person placing the order — how to compare quotes, what each size costs you in cloth, how to check what you have been sent, which claims hold up, and how to care for the finished thing.

The four things that decide what a silk scarf is

Nearly every question about a scarf comes back to four decisions. Change one and you have a different product, at a different cost.

The eight silk weaves, and what each one does

These are the weaves we produce in, with the momme range each is normally woven at. The ranges are not hard limits — they are where the cloth behaves the way people expect it to.

Choosing between them usually comes down to this: twill when the scarf is printed and worn, charmeuse when drape and lustre matter more than structure, crepe de chine when you want a matte finish that looks the same on both faces, habotai and chiffon when the scarf should be light, and jacquard when the pattern should be part of the cloth rather than printed onto it.

How to read a silk specification

These are the terms that turn up on a quotation or a sample card, roughly in the order you are likely to meet them.

Momme (mm)

The traditional unit for the weight of silk fabric. It measures weight, not quality. For the same weave, a higher momme gives a heavier cloth with more body and drape. Twill runs from about 14 to 19 momme; habotai from 5.

Silk twill

A weave with a fine diagonal rib, produced by stepping the weft across the warp. The diagonal structure gives it body, drape and a subtle sheen, and it takes printed colour with depth. It is the standard weave for a printed luxury scarf.

Charmeuse

A satin weave with a glossy face and a matte back. Softer and more fluid than twill, with more lustre. Chosen when the drape matters more than the structure.

Crepe de chine

A lightweight plain-weave silk made from alternately twisted yarns. The twist, not the weave, produces its fine pebbled surface. It is matte rather than glossy, and both faces look the same.

Habotai

A light, sheer, plain-weave silk — also called habutai or pongee. It ranges from 5 to 12 momme, is the most accessible of the silks, and is often used for lightweight printed scarves and linings.

Chiffon and georgette

The two lightest, most translucent silks. Chiffon is airier and softer; georgette is springier and less lustrous. Both are chosen when the scarf should add dimension without weight.

Organza

A thin, plain-weave, sheer silk with a crisp, structured hand. Mainly used for bridal and evening wear, and for gift packaging where a sculptural quality is wanted.

Jacquard

A weave where the pattern is built into the cloth on a jacquard loom rather than printed on the surface. The motif is part of the fabric, so it cannot wear off the face of the scarf.

Hand-rolled edge

The hem is rolled over and stitched by hand, on all four sides, producing a fine cord along the edge. It is skilled hand work on every scarf, and the most visible difference between a scarf finished as craft and one finished as a giveaway.

Machine hem

A straight stitched hem, done by machine. Neat and durable, and considerably faster than hand rolling. It is the correct choice for giveaways, promotional orders and linings.

Digital printing

The design is printed directly from a digital file. There is no screen setup, so short runs and many-colour or photographic artwork are not penalised. Colour is reproduced very close to the artwork, but fabric is not paper: some colours fall outside what a printer can physically produce, and the closest achievable tone is printed instead.

Screen printing

Ink is pushed through a mesh screen, one screen per colour. It carries a setup cost per colour, then prints cheaper per piece once the run is long enough to absorb that setup. Suited to long runs with a limited number of flat colours.

Colour matching

Adjusting the print so the finished scarf matches an approved reference — usually a brand colour or a physical sample. It is done during sampling. Once you approve a physical sample, later production is matched to that sample.

MOQ

Minimum order quantity — the smallest run a factory will produce in one specification. A low MOQ exists so that a design can be tested in the market, or a corporate or event order made viable, before committing to volume.

How to check a scarf you have just been sent

A sample is the only place where a specification becomes real. Four things are worth doing before you approve one, and none of them needs equipment.

• Tie it. A scarf woven at a wearable momme holds the knot where you put it. If it slides out on its own, the cloth is lighter than the specification implies.
• Turn it over. On a print that runs through the cloth, the back of the scarf looks close to the front. If the reverse is pale and the fold lines show through, the design was printed on one face only.
• Run a thumb along the edge. A hand-rolled hem reads as a fine cord along all four sides, with the stitching following the roll. A machine hem is flat and straight.
• Burn one loose thread. Over a sink, away from anything flammable: silk smells like burnt hair and leaves a soft ash that crushes between the fingers, while polyester melts into a hard bead. It is a useful indication rather than a laboratory result, and it is worth doing once with any new supplier.

Questions buyers ask us

Where to go next

If you are specifying an order, the useful next stops are the silk scarf formats — square, neck, bandana, pocket square and shawl — the custom programme for printing, logo scarves and private label, and the MOQ and lead time page for what a first run actually involves. If you would rather look at the cloth, the craft pages go through the nine production steps from artwork to a packed order. And if you are at the point of comparing suppliers, start with the size guide, how to check what you have been sent, and which silk claims hold up.