Silk is a protein fibre, not a mineral one – closer in structure to your own hair than to cotton or wool. That single fact explains almost everything about how it should, and should not, be treated.

Heat is the first thing to avoid. A washing machine’s spin cycle and a tumble dryer’s heat both attack the protein bonds that give silk its strength and its characteristic sheen. Fibres that have been through a hot cycle rarely tear immediately; they simply lose resilience, and the damage only shows months later as thinning at the seams or a dulled surface that no amount of ironing brings back.

Water is the second risk, and the one people underestimate. Silk can water-spot – a pale, ring-shaped mark left behind when a single drop dries unevenly on the surface. It happens with plain water as easily as with wine or coffee, which is why blotting rather than rubbing is always the right first move, however tempting rubbing feels.

Agitation is the third. Twisting, wringing or scrubbing breaks down the weave structure, particularly in finer silks such as chiffon and habotai, where the threads have little room to move without distorting the drape the fabric is prized for.

At our studios, silk is assessed piece by piece before any cleaning method is chosen. Printed silks, embroidered panels and pieces with structured linings each behave differently under solvent, and a specialist decides the method rather than a machine setting. We use liquid CO2 dry cleaning wherever the finish allows it, since it works without heat and leaves no residue in the fibre – the two things silk cannot tolerate well.

If something is spilt on silk, the single most useful thing to do before it reaches us is nothing dramatic: blot, do not rub, and keep the garment away from direct heat until it can be properly assessed. A stain that is professionally treated within a day or two comes out far more reliably than one left to set.