How To Spot A Fake Silk Scarf
A great way to add some flair, grace, and elegance to any outfit is to pair it with a luxurious, silk scarf. Whether it is tied in a masterful knot around your neck or hanging loosely from your shoulders in a waterfall of soft, velvety fabric, a silk scarf is a versatile accessory that is perfect for both casual and formal or semi-formal occasions. Unfortunately, good things in life are harder to come by, and you need to invest some effort into making sure that you are getting the real deal when shopping for silk scarves. The market is full of phonies that look oh so real from a distance but are nothing more than impure mixtures of rayon or polyester with some silk.
To make your silk scarf shopping easier, we have compiled a list of signs, tips, and tricks that you can use to spot a fake silk scarf:
Check The Price
As much as any of us loves a good bargain, there is no such thing when it comes to purchasing silk items. Silk clothing is typically quite cumbersome and expensive to manufacture, which is why the base price is quite high. If you find a silk scarf under $20 that is not on sale, you might want to steer away.
How Does It Feel?
Once you have let go of the price tag, it is time to use the touch test. Real silk has a unique property- it starts to get warm as you rub and move it between your fingers or in your palm. If you do this and the fabric remains cool, it is a good indicator that something may be amiss. Another clue to notice would be to look out for a crunching sound when you bunch up the fabric in the palm of your hand, a sound similar to the crunching of snow under your boots. This happens with real silk.
Test The Smoothness
One of the most sought after qualities of the silk fabric is its illustrious shine and heavenly smoothness. You can test it by simply allowing your fingers to graze the surface of the fabric and feeling the smoothness on your skin. You will also notice that your fingers leave behind trails of slightly altered colour on the scarf. You will not observe this with artificial silk, which tends to be quite stiff instead of smooth, and has a strange white tinge on its surface.
Pull It Through A Ring
Another way to test the smoothness of the silk scarf would be to pull it through a ring- quite literally. Considering how smooth actual silk is, it should easily pass through the small diameter with no difficulty as you pull it quickly. Artificial silk, on the other hand, will get bunched up in places and get caught on the rim of the ring.
Light It Up!
Lastly, you can confirm whether or not your scarf is actually made of silk with the flame test, which you should only perform at home under supervision. In an open area, take one or a few threads of the silk scarf, hold them with pliers away from your body, and light it up using a lighter or a candle. Real silk will burn only when it is in contact with the source of the fire and stops burning when removed. Artificial silk fibres will continue to burn once they catch on fire and will smell like burning plastic as opposed to the typical burning hair smell of real silk.