The Story of Silk: Part 1 - Weaving Nature into Luxury

May and June are a big deal in the life of a silkworm — and for our silk weavers, they’re the most important months of the year.

In recent years, silk worm farming has been on the rise in Türkiye, but there’s only one family in the entire country still reeling, spinning, dyeing, and weaving their silk by hand on old-style shuttle looms. We’re honoured to be the only boutique in western Türkiye working with them.

Silk is a natural protein fibre that’s been used for thousands of years — prized for its strength, softness, and luminous quality. While various insects produce silk, only the cocoons of moth caterpillars (aka silkworms) are used in textile-making.

Here’s where it gets fascinating…

Silkworm life begins in February, when the tiny eggs come out of stasis and begin incubation — not in high-tech labs, but in the breast pockets of family members, where body heat provides the perfect environment.

Once hatched, the worms are fed mulberry leaves — which, by some magical alignment of nature, begin to bloom just as the worms awaken. Over a few weeks, their body mass triples.

There are two ways to harvest silk:

1.

Reeled Silk

• Live cocoons are placed in hot water and boiled for 5–10 minutes to kill the worm
• A brush catches the fine strands, and the silk is gently pulled from the cocoon while still submerged
• The water is intentionally cooled (not heated) during reeling — a technique that results in stronger, more resilient threads

⚠️ Most modern silk producers speed up reeling by adding acid to the water, weakening the fibres and reducing durability. Not here.

Our weavers reel silk the slow, traditional way — over a wood fire — and reel only ~3kg per 12-hour day, prioritizing quality over quantity.

2.

Spun Silk

• If a moth escapes its cocoon (leaving an acidic hole behind), it can’t be reeled
• Instead, the cocoon is boiled, dried, and its fibres are spun into threads using drop spindles

Spun silk is softer, matte, and thicker than reeled silk. The threads are made by rolling fibre on the thigh, dropping the spindle, and spinning by hand — a slow and meditative process.

Both silk types are entirely natural, and both are a labor of love.

This is not just fabric — it’s nature, patience, and generations of knowledge in every thread.

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