To wash a silk pillowcase, use cold water and a small amount of pH-neutral detergent, on a delicate cycle inside a mesh laundry bag or by hand. Wash it on its own, away from other colors. Skip bleach and fabric softener, never put it in the dryer, and air dry it flat or hanging, out of direct sun.
That's the whole routine. One part of it, the colors rule, has a story in our house.
My husband, Cooper, learned it in a taekwondo studio. When our boys were little, Cooper and our two sons, Hudson and Kingston, about six and four, started taekwondo in white gis, a sign of purity for new students. Then Cooper's white gi goes through the wash with one of the boys' red gi pants. It comes out pink.
The master takes him aside. "I already know what happened here. Do you want to get another?" By then all three of them have earned purple belts, and Cooper chooses a red gi.
That gi wasn't silk. But the lesson carries straight over: anything that bleeds color can stain whatever it's washed with, and you can't always wash a dye transfer back out. So silk goes in on its own. Here's the rest, step by step.
What do you need to wash a silk pillowcase?
- A fine-mesh laundry bag, if you're using the machine
- A pH-neutral detergent with no enzymes, bleach or optical brighteners. how to choose a detergent for silk shows you what to look for on the back of the bottle.
- Cold water
- A clean towel and a flat surface or drying rack
Check the care label first. If it says something different from this guide, the label wins.
How do you machine wash a silk pillowcase?
- Close it up. Zip the zipper or tuck the envelope flap, and turn the pillowcase inside out. Open zipper teeth are an easy way for silk to snag.
- Bag it. Put it in a fine-mesh laundry bag. The bag keeps it off the drum and away from anything with hooks, buttons or zippers.
- Wash it on its own. No other colors, no towels, no jeans. If it must share a load, share it only with other silk in the same color.
- Choose the gentlest setting. Delicate cycle, cold water, lowest spin.
- Use a little detergent. About half what you'd use for a normal load. No bleach, no fabric softener.
- Take it out right away. Silk left sitting wet in the drum creases, and damp fabric is where color moves.
- Air dry it. Lay it flat on a clean towel or hang it, out of direct sun. Never the dryer.
If you're still not sure a machine is a good idea, whether machine washing silk is really safe answers that question on its own.
How do you hand wash a silk pillowcase?
- Fill a clean basin with cold water and stir in a small amount of pH-neutral detergent.
- Submerge the pillowcase and swish it gently for two or three minutes. Don't scrub or twist.
- Drain, refill with cold water, and rinse until no suds remain.
- Press the water out against the side of the basin, or roll the pillowcase in a towel and press. Never wring it.
- Lay it flat or hang it to dry, out of direct sun.
Can you put a silk pillowcase in the dryer?
No. Not on low, not for a few minutes. Silk is a protein fiber, and heat and tumbling are both hard on it. Every care guide on this site gives the same rule: air dry only.
Lay it flat on a clean towel or hang it on a rack, away from radiators and out of direct sun. Sunlight can yellow silk over time. A pillowcase usually dries in a few hours.
What should you never use on silk?
- Enzyme detergents. Most stain-fighting detergents contain protease, an enzyme built to break down protein stains. Silk is protein. In a 1998 study of fibers washed with protease, silk was the most damaged of the three fibers tested.
- Chlorine bleach. It degrades silk fiber and turns it yellow.
- Fabric softener. It coats the fiber, and silk doesn't need the help.
- Hot water. Cold water and the right detergent are enough.
- Other colors in the load. See: one pink gi.
How often should you wash a silk pillowcase?
Every 7 to 10 days works for most people, sooner if you sleep in heavy skincare or hair products. The full breakdown is in how often to wash a silk pillowcase.
Does washing it right make it last longer?
Yes. Washing is one of the few things that's fully in your hands. Silk that's washed cold, gently and away from heat keeps its surface longer than silk that isn't. The math is simple: if a $245 pillowcase lasts two years, that's about 34 cents a night, and care is what gets it there. The rest of the habits that matter are in how to make a silk pillowcase last longer. Washing an eye mask is a little different, and how to wash a silk sleep mask covers it.
How do you wash a Wink pillowcase?
The same way. Every Wink piece is Performance Luxury Silk™: 25 momme, Grade 6A, 100% mulberry silk charmeuse, crafted by a GOTS & OEKO-TEX certified silk house. Here's what Performance Luxury Silk means. The pillowcases are tested under OEKO-TEX Standard 100 certificate 22.HCN.30712, Product Class I, and you can look that number up yourself on our certifications page. Wink Silk is pursuing its own GOTS and OEKO-TEX certifications.
Each piece ships with its own care instructions, and those come first. They'll look a lot like this page: cold, gentle, on its own, and never the dryer.
If you'd like to be there when we open, Join Wink Privé, our free membership. It opens November 2, three days before everyone else.
Wink. The brand that shows you the certificates.
Sleep beautifully.
Sources
- Song, Yang and Choe, An Influence of Protease on Damage of Fiber, Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles (1998)
- All About Silk: Caring for Silk, University of Idaho Cooperative Extension Service (PDF)
- OEKO-TEX Label Check
Douceur Doublure™ is two layers of 25 momme, Grade 6A mulberry silk: 330 hand-numbered founding pieces, never restocked.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you wash a silk pillowcase?
Use cold water and a small amount of pH-neutral detergent, on a delicate cycle inside a mesh laundry bag or by hand. Wash it on its own, away from other colors. Skip bleach and fabric softener, take it out as soon as the cycle ends, and air dry it flat or hanging, out of direct sun. Never put it in the dryer.
Can you machine wash a silk pillowcase?
Yes, if the care label allows it. Close the zipper or flap, turn it inside out, put it in a fine-mesh laundry bag, and wash it on its own on a cold delicate cycle with the lowest spin. Use a little pH-neutral detergent with no enzymes or bleach, and air dry it afterward.
Can you put a silk pillowcase in the dryer?
No. Heat and tumbling are both hard on silk, which is a protein fiber. Lay the pillowcase flat on a clean towel or hang it on a rack, away from heat and out of direct sun, which can yellow silk over time. It usually dries in a few hours.
Can you wash silk with other clothes?
Wash it on its own. Anything that bleeds color can stain silk, and a dye transfer doesn't always wash out. Towels, jeans and anything with zippers or hooks can also snag it. If it must share a load, share it only with other silk in the same color, inside a mesh bag.
What detergent should I use on silk?
A pH-neutral detergent with no enzymes, bleach or optical brighteners, in about half the usual amount. Many stain-fighting detergents contain protease enzymes that break down protein, and silk is a protein fiber. Read the ingredient list on the back of the bottle, not the word gentle on the front.
