Identification
Since traditional Thai silk is hand woven, each silk fabric is unique and cannot be duplicated through commercial means. In contrast, artificial silk is machine woven, which means that every part of the fabric is identical and has the same color.
In addition, Thai silk has a unique lustre, with a sheen that has two unique blends: one color for the warp and another for the weft. Color changes as you hold the Thai silk fabric at varying angles against light.
Moreover, Thai silk smells like hair when burned, a testament to the natural fibre that comes from the silk worm, which is similar to the fibre of human hair and fingernails. If you move the flame, Thai silk immediately stops burning. On the other hand, artificial silk smells like plastic when burned.
In terms of price, Thai silk is usually 10 times more expensive than artificial silk.
Another simple way to identify authentic Thai silk is the "wedding ring" test. When you attempt to pull a yard or two of Thai silk fabric through a wedding ring, it will ease through and will show you just how smooth and flexible it is as a fabric. However, the same cannot be said for imitation fabrics as they will crunch up and be very difficult or even impossible to pull through a wedding ring.
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