How To Take Care Of Silk Hijabs

A silk hijab is a gorgeous addition to your wardrobe. Not only is it versatile, but it adds a dash of colour and gives you practical luxury which if you take care of, like any precious item, will last for years to come. If you do not already own a silk scarf, ensure you make this smart investment soon!

I will now go through steps helping you taking care of your silk scarves. Enjoy reading!

Do you have to use dry cleaners?

Silk is a protein fibre similar to the human hair and does not require special care to stay in good condition. However, by knowing the right method to clean, press, dry, and store your silk scarves, you can maintain them for years. Often you will see ‘dry clean only’ on the labels of silk scarfs which makes you cautious of taking care of them at home. Today we will share some tips of how to do it yourself.

Fat Cat has never quite worked out why all the panic ensues as silk has been produced for more than 5 thousand years, whereas dry cleaners stepped into the picture much later in the 1840’s. It’s highly unlikely people did not wash their scarves until then! That being said, if your worried you will ruin the material, stick to the dry cleaners. I don’t want to be bombarded by abuse if you manage to mess up on the tips! But rest assured these do work really well.

Tips for Silk scarves

Your do-nots:

• Do Not soak silk for more than a few minutes
• Do Not use harsh detergents that contain bleaches e.g. chlorine
• Do Not wring or twist
• Do Not expose to direct sunlight.
• Do Not spot clean, this can lead to lightening of that spot. If necessary, handwash the entire scarf. Alternatively if the stains are really bad hit the dry cleaners.
• Do Not dry silk through direct sunlight for long periods of time
• Do Not sprinkle silk garments with water when ironing.
• Do Not spin dry silk scarves

Your dos:

• Do colour test silk by cleaning a small hidden part of the scarf, if you see colour transfer, then this is your cue to dry cleaning only.
• Do soak a cotton swab in mild laundry detergent (baby shampoo works as well) dab it on a hidden part of the scarves and see if any dye comes off on the swab. This is only for super panicky ones like myself 🙂
• Do roll in towel to extract water.
• Do wash in warm water – Natural coating of silk reacts well to warm water.
• Do always iron the backside of the silk scarves.

Hand washing silk hijabs

• Use specially formulated silk shampoos or mild soap.
• Soak silk for 3-5 minutes in lukewarm water.
• Move the fabric during soaking from one side to another. Do not wring dry
• After around 5 minutes, remove your silk scarves from water and rinse with cool water.
• Add a teaspoonful of vinegar to completely get rid of soap and any alkaline in the washing solution.

Treating Stains

• If you rinse silk scarves in a diluted white vinegar solution, it keeps the material from yellowing.
• Recent stains such as sweat can be easily removed with a tablespoon of ammonia dissolved in a cup of water but old stains require vinegar solution. Be careful not to put too much in as this will destroy the scarf!
• Even if the perspiration stain fails to fade completely, do not use hard chemicals such as whiteners or bleach amongst others. They may make the silk to fade.

How to iron silk hijabs

• Do not wet one area whilst ironing as this is very like to stain the material with water marks.
• Iron it from the back side rather than the front as it could easily burn.
• Too much heat can dull or burn silk fabric.
• Interestingly, most wrinkles in silk are easily removed by hanging in the bathroom that has humidity in it – so try hanging it in the bathroom after a hot shower!

Bonus Tip: Storing Silk scarf 

• Keep them in a cotton pillowcase or materials that can breathe. Do not keep them in plastic; it traps moisture and this may result in yellowing or growth of mildew. Store cedar chip with your silk scarves to keep away moths and other bags.

I really hope these tips help you make the most of your silk scarves and hijabs. If you have any further questions or tips please do not hesitate to ask or share them. I look forward to reading your comments!