Some of the sericin may still remain on the threads to protect the fibres during processing, but this is usually washed out with soap and boiling water.
This is a crucial step in the silk production process as it ensures that there is no damage to the continuity of each thread.Įach thread is then carefully reeled from the cocoon in individual long threads, which are then wound on a reel. The cocoons are placed into boiling water in order to soften and dissolve the gum that is holding the cocoon together. Once the silkworms have spun their cocoon, they will eventually enclose themselves inside it and then it’s time to extract the silk threads. Each silkworm produces just one single strand of silk, which measures about 100 metres long and is held together by a type of natural gum, called sericin.ĭid you know? It takes around 2,500 silkworms to produce one pound of raw silk. At this time, they’ll stop eating and begin to raise their heads – that’s when they’re ready to spin their cocoon.Īttached to a secure frame or tree, the silkworm will begin spinning its silk cocoon by rotating its body in a figure-8 movement around 300,000 times – a process which takes around 3 to 8 days.
MAKING YOUR OWN SILKS STARTERS ORDERS 6 FULL
It takes around 6 weeks to grow to their full potential (about 3 inches). The silkworms feed continually on a huge amount of mulberry leaves to encourage growth.
These eggs eventually hatch to form silkworms, which are incubated in a controlled environment until they hatch into larvae (caterpillars). This is the term used to describe the process of gathering the silkworms and harvesting the cocoon to collect the materials.įemale silkmoths lay anything from around 300 – 500 eggs at any one time. Here is a step-by-step guide to the fascinating process in which silk is produced… 1. While silk is lustrous and lightweight, it’s also impressively strong, with one filament of silk being stronger than a comparable filament of steel. These incredible silkworms produce one of the most highly sought after materials with a plethora of excellent properties. While there are now a huge variety of different types of insects used to produce silk, the most commonly used species is the larvae of ‘Bombyx mori’ – ( the caterpillar of the domestic silkmoth). Even after all of those years, little has changed in the way silk is produced.ĭespite advances in production method technologies, silk production still very much remains a labour intensive process, and a lot of hard work is involved.
Silk dates back thousands of years, and still to this day is highly regarded as one of the most valuable, luxurious fabric. Possibly the most beautiful, delicate and lustrous materials ever created.
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