How To Test For Silk In A Rug

It is so easy to buy a fake silk rug if you don t know what to look fo.

How to test for silk in a rug.

A silk and wool combination rug will show more durability and resistance to stains and water will bead up on a rug with wool content since it is water resistant. Only a chemical test can determine this. Silk rugs should be placed in low traffic areas and out of direct sunlight which over time can fade the dyes in the rug. Genuine silk burns with smell of burnt hair.

This is perhaps the best and most definitive test to find genuine silk. How to identify real silk rugs. The silk rug has been coveted for hundreds of years. In addition to sharing the cleaning concerns of silk because most of these imitation silks are cellulose based.

When you are shopping for a silk rug there are a few small tests that you can do to help you identify whether it is a real silk material. These three techniques can help you distinguish the real silk rugs from the fake ones. Most artificial silk fibers are created from mercerized cotton rayon or other materials. With so many new materials and textiles showing up in the world the word silk is still considered to be the best of the best of fine fabrics.

A definitive test is to remove a small section of loose thread from the back of the rug and burn it. If a rug is in an area that receives significant foot traffic it should be rotated 180 degrees periodically to maintain even levels of wear to its surface. When you burn the edge of real silk fabric the flame is invisible and it will stop burning as soon as the flame is removed. You can take a few threads from the material and burn it with a flame.