How To Get Pure Silk

When a silkworm or larvae is ready to become a moth, it creates a cocoon from a single fine filament about 610 meter (2000 feet) long. The cocoons are collected and placed in hot water that kills the worms and loosens the filaments and to remove the Sericin which frees the silk filament ends for reeling or filature. The filaments from 10-12 cocoons are drawn from cocoons in water bowls and combined to form a single thread. These raw fibers contain a waxy substance called seracin that gives them irregularity which creates a beautiful natural character.
The yarn is now raw silk. Next the raw silk is twisted into a strand sufficiently strong for weaving or knitting. This procedure is called throwing. Different methods of twisting the threads are used for different fabrics and a single thread is used for sheer fabrics.