Silk clothes are preferred by many, and there is nothing strange about it - a light, flying and smooth fabric fits nicely to the body, while it looks very impressive and rich. The silk thing always adorns the one who wears it.
But, unfortunately, not everyone can competently look after things from this smooth material. How to wash a thing from delicate material can be read on the clothing label, but there may not be detailed information about ironing on the tag. The article will discuss how to iron silk correctly.
Who is wearing silk?
Lightweight, delicate and virtually weightless material has been known for thousands of years. And over the years, not a single person has doubted the value of silk.
Thousands of years ago, silk was dyed in various colors. Only princesses, queens, empresses and other noble persons were entitled to wear this noble material. Silk was placed at the level of precious stones.
Arabs always gave silk to their wives so that their ladies would sew their handkerchiefs and clothes. The more silk clothes were in the woman’s wardrobe, the richer her husband.
Today, the material is no less popular. Any fashionista can boast a wardrobe in which there is a silk blouse, shirt or a flying skirt.
In the modern world, silk is not so natural, and it has synthetic fibers, but nobody canceled the proper care of a thing from delicate material. So how to iron silk?
General recommendations
It doesn’t matter whether silk is made of artificial or natural. This wardrobe item still requires proper handling. Any wrong step, and the structure of the material will be broken, which will lead to deformation of the product. To avoid this situation, you need to follow some simple recommendations:
- Learn the label. Be sure to read the manufacturer's recommendations. It should indicate whether it is possible to iron silk. This item may not be ironed.
- Before each ironing, check the surface of the iron. It should be without burnt spots and dirt.
- Before smoothing silk, pour water out of the iron. The fact is that if water gets on the silk item during ironing, there will be sloppy stains on the subject of the wardrobe. In addition, things from this material do not require steaming - you do not need water at all.
- The surface on which you plan to iron should be covered with a white cotton cloth.
- At what temperature do you iron silk? At the minimum. Be sure to adjust the heating temperature of the iron. If your iron has the "Silk" function, then just install it.
Although some rules for handling material may vary depending on the presence of synthetic fibers in the fabric. Below we will consider recommendations for natural and synthetic silk.
How to iron natural silk without an iron
Professionals say that natural material does not require smoothing. Then how to iron silk without an iron? You only need to properly wash and dry the product. Here's how to do it right:
- Wash clothes in Delicate Wash mode.
- It is advisable to disable the spin mode on the washing machine. It’s better to wring the item by hand. Do not twist the product, but only gently pat it with a clean terry towel.
- Use special conditioners for washing to be sure that after this there will not be creases on things.
- Wash clothes only in soft water.
- Put the thing to dry on a flat surface, after smoothing out all the bumps with your hands. It is permissible to dry the product on the shoulders.
- Do not leave the thing to dry under the sun and do not dry it.
If as a result you get an even product, it means that you did everything right. It is better to store silk clothes in a closet on a coat hanger to prevent unwanted folds and creases.
How to iron natural silk with an iron
You learned how to iron silk without an iron. But it so happens that without this household item just can not do. If it turned out that the use of the iron cannot be avoided, then you need to iron it extremely carefully:
- Iron the item when it is still not completely dry after washing.
- Sprinkle a dry product from the spray gun and cover it with a bag for 10 minutes so that the moisture is evenly distributed throughout the product.
- Iron silk clothes exclusively on the wrong side.
- A fragile product should be ironed with gauze or a white cotton cloth.
- Do not leave the iron in one place for more than a second, otherwise you risk burning silk.
How to iron synthetic silk
It would seem that synthetic silk does not require such care as natural, but it was not there. This is even more moody material. For example, there are fabrics that do not tolerate machine wash and iron. What if the thing made of synthetic silk is dented? How to bring it into proper shape?
Experienced housewives have long found a way out of this situation. And you need to act like this:
- Hang the clothes on your shoulders and place them in the bathroom.
- Type hot water into the bath and wait until the room is filled with steam.
- Wait 30 minutes and take your clothes from the bathroom.
If you have a professional steam generator, then you can use it to smooth silk items.
This method can smooth even the most capricious synthetic silk. All folds and creases will disappear, and the complex structure of the tissue will not be damaged.
There is another way that allows you to smooth the product from synthetic silk without the help of an iron. You will need glycerin:
- Dissolve 20 milliliters of glycerin in 5 liters of soft water.
- Rinse the thing in the prepared solution and hang to dry on the shoulders.
- Then iron the item through a white cotton cloth.
Glycerin protects tissue from exposure to high temperatures and moisture. Thanks to this substance, clothes will not lose their original appearance.
Finally
Now you know how to iron silk. There is nothing complicated in this process. Knowing all the secrets of smoothing this material, you can safely go shopping and get yourself some silk skirts, blouses or even a bedding set.
These recommendations will help you keep the item in perfect condition. All you need to remember is to properly wash and store silk products, then they will not lose their gloss. You should also be careful with the iron - one wrong move can completely ruin an attractive and smooth silk thing.