Silk Duvet Guide
Check the silk type
There are many types of silk whose thermal properties but also the price vary significantly. It is therefore necessary to check the variety but also the length of the fibers.
Silk flakes
Whatever the poetic name given to them by some of our colleagues (silk cocoons, mulberry... etc.) the silk flakes are waste of the silk industry which were recycled and make it possible to manufacture duvets at lower cost and of very questionable quality.
They are therefore to be avoided.
Obviously, we do not offer any products made from silk flakes on our site.
Mulberry silk
Characterized by its whiteness, the mulberry silk comes from the cocoon of the butterfly Bombyx mori whose worm is fed with mulberry leaves.
Its jealously guarded secret during the “Silk Road” era contributed to China’s prosperity for centuries. Even today, China produces the best silk. She has kept the ancestral know-how which allows us to make real silk duvets breathable and thermoregulatory.
Because it is very light, mulberry silk is particularly suitable for the manufacture of lingerie items or women's wardrobes (silk squares, blouses, etc.). Once tinted, the effect is spectacular.
Oak silk
The oak silk called silk Tussah is a silk of Indian origin from the cocoon of the butterfly Tussah (Antherae mylitta), wild silkworms (i.e. not raised in sericulture), which feed on the Manchurian oak. India and China are famous for their silks and particularly for their silk Tussah very high quality.
Oak silk has the particularity of being hard-wearing and very resistant. In a very soft natural beige color, its slightly less smooth appearance than that of mulberry silk gives it a slightly more grainy texture with incomparable natural charm. In addition to its shine, it is strong and easy to spin thanks to its long fibers.
It is therefore a very popular silk for the manufacture of high-end bedding items. because it does not pill and is very resistant to wear and friction. Its physiological qualities also make it an excellent filling, both warm and light, ideal for making high-quality natural duvets and pillows.
Last advantage, and not the least, silk Tussah is harvested after the silkworm, transformed into a butterfly, has emerged from its cocoon. Conversely, in intensive mulberry silkworm farms, mulberry silk costs the butterflies their lives.
If silk duvets and pillows have infinitely more interesting properties than most duvets on the market, you just have to pay attention to their price positioning! Our quilts Label Naturel Imperial Silk have an unbeatable quality-price ratio because we produce them by shortening our supply circuits.
Caution : some colleagues highlight the presence of a zipper allowing them to check the quality of their products. Our oak silk duvets are not equipped with such a zipper with the sole aim of minimizing their manufacturing cost in order to offer them to you at the best price. However, our duvets are manufactured with great care and according to extremely demanding specifications which leaves absolutely no room for mediocrity and guarantees you a very high quality filling.
QUESTION |
Are mulberry silk and oak silk the same?
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Yes ! Mulberry silk and oak silk are equal without it being possible to make a real hierarchy. Their physiological qualities are identical, their covering power and their longevity too. The worms that produce them simply feed on the leaves of two different trees! Because it is wild (because the silkworms that produce it are not raised in sericulture) oak silk only has a more rustic appearance than mulberry silk and is therefore very slightly cheaper. This slight price difference is also reflected in our sales prices. |
Check the silk extraction method
The extraction method is very important because it determines the size and quality of the fibers and therefore their thermal properties.
Mechanical extraction
It produces broken, short, low-quality fibers at low cost.
Manual extraction
It is a long manual process which allows long and continuous silk fibers to be extracted from the cocoon and then washed.
The fibers of silk long provide the best thermal properties. They are the most absorbent and therefore limit perspiration. They are also the most anti-bacterial and are particularly suitable for people with allergies.
But above all, they are the only ones to allow manual manufacturing.
All our duvets are made with long silk fibers.
Check the type of manufacturing
Silk duvets made by hand in the traditional way
Only long silk fibers make it possible to make silk quilts without excessive stitching.
It is a tedious manual job which consists of stretching and crossing long silk fibers over a multitude of thicknesses in order to obtain fine silk "tablecloths". These are then superimposed on each other to obtain a thick and cozy silk carpet which will constitute the filling of the duvet.
This rug is then covered with its cotton cover, the whole being then held in place by a few circular stitching points a few centimeters in diameter distributed evenly over the entire surface of the duvet.
It is only at the cost of this long work that the silk filling can breathe and offer the best thermal regulation.
It is therefore normal that these quilts are more expensive. However, the price difference is not excessive and is justified by the much higher quality of the product.
All our silk duvets are made in the traditional way.
Silk duvets with checkered stitching
The topstitching put forward by certain manufacturers and not the least of them actually serves to maintain inferior filling or even residues of silk cocoons.
It is a simple and quick manufacturing process which consists of distributing short fibers or pieces of cocoons over the entire surface of the duvet and then passing the duvet through a topstitching machine.
The numerous topstitching creates thermal bridges and flattens the silk filling, which becomes less insulating and less breathable at the same time because it traps less air.
We do not offer such duvets on our site.
Washable silk duvets
The filling of silk duvets is not washable. It gets damaged, pills and loses its covering properties after each wash.
Tight stitching helps camouflage this deterioration but you will feel the difference in thermal comfort after washing. These duvets should therefore be avoided.
We obviously don't sell them..
Check the origin of the silk
While most of our products are manufactured in France and Europe, our silk duvets and pillows are made in China, at the very place where the fiber which composes them is produced.
China has been a major producer of silk since the dawn of time ("The Silk Road" followed by Marco Polo) and has specialized for many decades in the manufacture of high-quality silk duvets shaped in a very particular way described above.
It benefits from ancestral know-how unfortunately not found in France.
It is therefore for this sought-after expertise that our duvets are produced in the Middle Kingdom and for no other reason.
To our knowledge, there are no French manufacturers manufacturing silk duvets using the traditional method.
Made according to the rules of the art and finished with great care, our silk duvets are high-end products manufactured according to very strict specifications and certified Oeko Tex®, guarantee of the total health safety of the raw materials of which they are composed.
As for our sole supplier, he is a reference in his sector of activity.
Check the presence of the label Oeko-Tex
A manufacturer can affix the label Oeko-Tex® on a product if it has been proven through exhaustive laboratory tests that all of its components, including accessories, represent no danger to health.
These harmfulness controls include substances regulated and prohibited by law, but also chemicals known to be of health concern as well as parameters introduced as health precautions.
The more intense the contact with the skin, the stricter the criteria to be met in terms of human ecology.
However, not all suppliers are necessarily virtuous. It is therefore important to ensure the safety of products through an independent label such as Oeko-Tex® standard 100. It assures you of the absence of harmful substances.
Check the quality of the envelope
Cotton envelopes
A “thread count” of 80 threads/cm² (240 TC) is preferable. Below, the fabric has a much too rough feel, wear is faster and the cover risks deteriorating too quickly.
All our silk duvets have a cover made of jacquard 120 threads/cm² (300TC) 100% cotton, for a silky touch and perfect longevity.
Coated envelopes
Some envelopes are covered with a synthetic coating. We do not recommend this type of envelope, which harms thermal properties silk duvets and which are noisy when they are wrinkled, which can wake you up if you move during the night.
We do not offer any duvets with a coated shell.
Silk envelopes
An envelope in satin or silk jacquard is very expensive. Only the quilts very high end have this level of finish, but they are also overpriced.
It is mainly the filling which provides thermal comfort. It is therefore not not essential that your duvet is 100% silk.
If you still want to treat yourself to the luxury of a 100% silk duvet, it is important to know the mom of the envelope fabric. For a durable duvet, it is best to have a minimum density of 19 moms.
Furthermore, we invite you to be wary of offers of cheap 100% silk duvets. The price ratio with a duvet with a cotton cover should be at least from single to double, otherwise the risk of scam is high
Check the weight
- For our summer duvet, we opted for a weight of 150 g/m² which is truly optimal because it allows you to be warm without any risk of sweating.
We invite you to opt for a 4 seasons duvet (summer duvet + mid-season duvet) in case your room is not heated. The two duvets attach to form the equivalent of a winter duvet. This saves you from buying the winter duvet.
If your room is heated and maintained during winter at a temperature between 17° and 20°, opt for the Mi-saison.u duvet above 20° or if you tend to always be hot, prefer the Summer duvet.Caution: 360 g/m² silk duvets are called winter duvets by some stores. You will notice that this weight is closer to a mid-season weight. The name “winter silk duvet” is therefore sometimes misleading and you risk having a lighter duvet than expected.
Check price
Many customers surprised by the extremely high sales prices charged by some of our colleagues (and not the least) rightly question us about what could explain that our duvets are less expensive than those of the competition, fearing that this price difference could be justified by lower quality products.
The explanation is to be found in the pricing policy of our colleagues who literally ride on their image and reputation, claiming to impose crazy prices on their customers and on the silk bedding market, in which they are in no way specialists.
Their sales prices and the margins charged are all the more insane as they are totally unjustifiable because the duvets in question, sometimes sold for almost €800, are made with silk residue obtained during the cutting of cocoons (see the paragraph above "check silk type") with which our colleagues industrially fill pre-made envelopes as you would fill a duvet with down or feathers and all that remains is to pass through a topstitching machine!
Conversely, our silk duvets are produced with impeccable raw materials, manufactured according to the rules of the art according to centuries-old techniques and know-how and finally are finished by hand.
They are only sold at the right price. No more, no less.