Silk
comforters are a new addition to our site and I have been
educating myself as the subtle differences between brands
and what makes a silk
comforter worth taking a look at for a summer bedding
choice.
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As the weather has warmed up, even in Boston,
reluctantly, my husband and I jettisoned our "to die
for" Monarch Arctic 800-fill Hypodown
comforter. My husband, who had previously complained he
was always cold before we got the Hypodown comforter, was
now complaining of being roasted alive. This opened the way
for me to turn our bedroom into yet another laboratory for
product testing - this time a silk
comforter. My husband is now a very willing participant
in these experiments. Here is what I concluded.
Pluses
- First thing I noticed was how unbelievably
luxurious, supple and drapeable the whole silk
comforter felt.
- While not as "puffy" as down,
it was just dreamy as a fabric. In fact, my husband said
he liked being able to easily see the television in bed,
as he has had to mash down the Hypodown Comforter in order
to see over it!
- Silk is naturally hypoallergenic and inhospitable
to dust mites, so no allergic reaction or need for dust-mite
encasings.
- The silk
comforter was as light as a feather and I did not feel
weighed down, such as with the summer cotton blanket and
cotton coverlet, I had been using. I sleep in an air-conditioned
bedroom in Boston in the summer, and found the silk comforter
surprisingly warm, in fact, warmer than I predicted. This
is due to the fine thermal properties of Mulberry silk (explained
below).
- I have tried out several silk comforters
including those made of Mulberry silk, the best quality
silk in the marketplace. The Ming
Dynasty silk comforter felt softer and smoothest of
all the comforters I tried, due to it being made out of
long fiber high quality silk. Tussah silk or wild silk is
coarser with more impurities than Mulberry silk. Mulberry
silk has better thermal properties.
Minuses
- Whatever silk
comforter vendors say about silk, it is NOT as warm
as Down even in heavier weights such as found in the Imperial
Delight silk comforter that also I tried out, but it
makes it a perfect summer weather candidate. I did find
it to be warmer than Primaloft summer blankets or a Hyperclean
down blanket.
- I was startled to detect a slight, but not
unpleasant odor, to silk comforters when I first unpacked
them. Apparently, that is the smell of natural silk intensified
by a plastic bag. It dissipated over a couple of days' duration.
- A good silk comforter will last about 5
and up to 10 years if proper care is taken of it. This includes
always having a duvet cover on it and never trying to wash
it yourself, which would invalidate the warranty. A silk
comforter needs professional cleaning.
- This is not the kind of comforter to have
your pets and children hang out on. While the feel is incredibly
luxurious, it also feels much more "fragile."
At the very least, I felt this was a bedding item to be
treated "carefully." I concluded that a duvet
cover was absolutely essential and is needed in order not
to void the manufacturer's warranty. In the end, my favorite
duvet cover was a 400tc cotton sateen; a very silk and supple
feeling fabric but had the advantage of being washable -
an absolute necessity for those of us who have pets who
sneak up on the bed.
- The "hand tacking" ties on the
Ming
Dynasty silk comforter models initially appeared like
the finish work on the comforter was somewhat lacking, until
I learned that hand tacking or hand ties are the traditional
Chinese design and are there to keep the hand ties in place.
In any case, the ties do not show once the comforter is
put into a duvet cover.
Summary
I am thrilled with my Ming
Dynasty silk comforter as a summer addition to my bed.
It feels extremely luxurious and it has just the right of
warmth for the warmer weather. From $369.95.
See all the comforters at Allergybuyersclub.com
See all the blankets at Allergybuyersclub.com
First Published: late June 2002
Updated: April 2007
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