Silk Scarves
Choosing silk scarves
Pure silk scarves — worn a hundred ways, remembered for one.
A scarf is the one silk piece bought as much for the print as for the fibre, but the fibre decides whether the print lasts. Mulberry silk takes dye evenly and deeply, so the colours hold their saturation through years of folding rather than going chalky at the creases.
Hand-rolled edges are the traditional finish and the reason a good scarf drapes rather than hangs — the weight at the perimeter is what makes it fall into a knot properly. Where a scarf is finished this way, its page says so.
Size changes what a scarf is for. A smaller square is a neck piece; anything approaching 90cm can be worn as a headscarf, tied to a bag, or used as a wrap, which is why it is the size most often bought as a gift.
Silk is a protein fibre, so heat, bleach and direct sun age it far faster than wearing it does. Cool hand washing and shade drying are most of the job.