Everything You Need to Know about Four Types of Silk

Photo by Susan Wilkinson on Unsplash

Silk can be found in all forms of fashion, from clothing to accessories. Artistic pieces have also been made using the fabric. It’s considered one of the most luxurious fabrics in the world due to its fine texture and feel. Silk is produced by silkworms that feed on mulberry leaves. The cocoons are harvested, boiled, and then dried until they become threads. It’s an important part of many industries, including medicine. Find out more about four types of silk below.

1. Mulberry Silk

Mulberry silk at Silk World is one of the finest textiles in the world, thanks to its strength, softness, and color vibrancy. It has been in use in China since the Neolithic period (c. 10000 BC), when it was used to make everything from waddings for mummy wrappings to silk ribbons wrapped around the world’s first compass-like navigational device. Even today, mulberry silk plays an important role in Chinese culture-from religious ceremonies to social occasions such as weddings and funerals.

Mulberry silk is a luxurious fabric used for making the finest women’s clothing and accessories like scarves and gloves. Mulberry silk is actually not made from mulberries but from a species of silk moth native to China that feeds on trees of the Morus genus. To make mulberry silk, cocoons are hand-picked off the trees and then boiled or steamed to remove excess sericin (a gum-like protein) found in the larvae’s cocoons. After this step, the cocoons are dried and opened to reveal a filamentous strand of raw silk thread known as singles. These raw strand fibers are combed out, run through a machine called a reel, and twisted together to form a soft, lustrous yarn.

We all know it from luxurious designerwear to clutches and handbags, but did you know that a silk tree is a real thing? Like a cherry tree or a pineapple tree, silkworms are cultivated for their silk. Mulberry buds are grafted onto trees, and after about three years, the trees produce silkworms, which leaves the mulberries for us to enjoy.

2. Tasar Silk

Tasar silk has a rich history and a unique story as it relates to the culture of Azerbaijan. It has been the national dress for women among the Azerbaijani populace for centuries and has been used to create some incredible works of art that are still proudly worn by indigenous Azeri people today.

Antherarea (Tasar silkworm) is a caterpillar of Antheraea mylitta, a voracious eater who eats 15 times its body weight each day and can survive on either mulberry leaves or the Arjun plant. It is very interesting. Antheraea Mylitta is a premium silkworm in the world of industrial silk. It is the same worm that is used to make Neera or Neelu in Thai.

3. Muga Silk

Buga or muga silk is a fiber obtained from the silkworm Antheraea assamensis, which feeds on the leaves of the Morinda plant. Muga is the popular term in Assam… Muga, or golden silk is an expensive kind. This yellow silk is originally from Assam region. Many shops sell this yellow silk in Kolkata, which is also one of the well-known markets to buy Muga products.

4. Eri Silk

The breed of silkworms called Philosamia ricini is popular for producing Eri silk. Actually, these worms can also be reared on mulberry leaves, and the fabric obtained from these worms may be termed as Mou silk. This fiber is compatible to dye in any color. Despite the similarity of the names already given to this fabric, there was a deliberate effort to differentiate it from Mulberry silk.

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