We know, we know. Silk feels the most luxurious, whether a silk dress for a night out, silk pajamas to feel fancy and comfy, or a vintage silk rug as a statement piece in your living room. It is soft to the touch, so easy on the eye, and screams luxury in any state. But have you ever wondered how this impressive material was produced? Let’s take a look!

The Life Cycle Of A Silkworm

Egg

Silkworm eggs hatch due to humidity and warmth during springtime. Exposure to sunlight makes it faster to hatch. It takes around 2 weeks for eggs to hatch. 

Silkworm

After the eggs crack, hairy little silkworms emerge. The baby silkworms are to be cared well. They should be fed fresh mulberry leaves at least three times a day. Since their jaws are not strong enough at such a young age, it is better to cut leaves into smaller pieces initially. They grow bigger and slowly turn white in 3 weeks. After 3 weeks, they start to release a thick liquid and slowly produce silk. 

Cocoon

At the end of 4 weeks, the worms turn into cocoons. It takes 48 hours to complete creating a cocoon for a silkworm. The cocoons are the size of a small cotton ball and are made of a single, extremely thin thread of silk fiber. This thread of silk fiber is around 5500 ft long. Before cocoons hatch, some are taken away to be boiled in water. The rest is left to hatch and become moths.

The process of rearing the silkworms to produce silk is known as sericulture. After the cocoons are boiled, machines are used to separate the silk fibers from the cocoon, thus reeling the silk. Then, those silk fibers are spun into silk threads, ready to be woven. About 40 cocoons are used to create a single line of silk. To give you a better understanding, to make a silk shirt, around 1000 cocoons are used. 

Moth

After the moths hatch from the cocoons, the male and female moths mate. A female moth lays 200 to 500 eggs, and the life cycle of silkworms begins again. 

Silk Rugs

Silk has been around for the past 5000 years. It was first found in China and is widely spread worldwide. When it comes to silk rugs, Turkey is famous for Hereke Rugs, which are handmade authentic silk rugs. 

Hereke rugs are typically made of silk, and the most luxurious ones have threads of gold or silver woven into them. These luxurious rugs first started to be produced in the 19th century.

The Ottoman Sultan at the time founded the Hereke Imperial Manufacture to produce the rugs he wanted in his palaces in Istanbul, such as Dolmabahce Palace. He also gifted the silk Hereke rugs to royalty from other countries visiting the Ottoman Empire.

Hereke rugs are still being manufactured today using the ancient designs of the Ottoman sultan, as well as traditional Anatolian and modern figurative motifs. They are still one of the most luxurious rugs sold, still being made to fit into palaces. 

Check out our Hereke rug collection to treat yourself. Remember, the best statement piece is a vintage silk rug for a living room.