Traditional silk is the natural filament produced by the salivary glands of silkworms which are a type of moth that feeds on the mulberry bush. Silkworms are caterpillars, not worms. They spin their cocoons using a complex set of mechanisms within their bodies when they change from larva in to pupa. Thai silk is produced by Thai caterpillars raised on Thai mulberry leaves by Thai weavers in Thailand.

From Eggs to Thai Silk.

Stage 1

The Bombyx mori moths mate and lay their eggs on the leaves of the mulberry bush. The eggs are very small about the size of a pin head and resembling a poppy seed. These eggs hatch in 10 to 14 days.

Stage 2

When the worm first emerges it is black and very small about3mm long. This is the start of its 28 days of life - during which it will eat ravenously and grow to 10,000 times its original size. The worm will undergo 4 periods of molting, each one lasting around 24 hours, during which the worm will neither eat nor move.
During this period of growth, the village silk producer is very busy. Keeping the worms healthy and developing normally is a full time job. The worms must be fed three times a day on fresh mulberry leaves morning, noon, and night. These leaves need to be specially prepared to meet the changing needs of the growing silkworm. When worms are young, they require finely chopped young leaves which are picked from the top of the mulberry tree. As they grow older, the leaf sections increase in size, and the leaves are gathered from further down the plants stem.

Many factors contribute to the overall health of the worm, and the successful silk producer must manage them all with care. They must keep the rearing house free from disease and pests through regular cleaning, maintenance, and disinfection of tools and workers. The house must also be kept at a certain temperature, humidity and luminosity while preserving adequate ventilation. The worms must be spaced at the proper density on the feeding trays, and the trays should be kept free from excess waste and uneaten leafage. The worms must also be dusted with lime and papsol in order to prevent bacterial infection.

After around 28 days of hard work, the white worms have now grown to their full size of about 8cm long and 1.5cm wide.

Stage 3

After the lava stage the silk worms form a cocoon on the mulberry bush, it is this cocoon which they produce that is made from silk. This stage is known as the pupa stage of the silk worms’ life. The worm builds its nest by secreting two filaments from its mouth. One is a very thin strand of silk, and the other is a cord of gum called sericin. When exposed to the air, the two harden together and become one length of thread. The worm will slowly envelope itself in a cocoon by winding one continuous thread about itself in a figure eight pattern.

The full term is 14 days, but at this point the weavers will harvest about 2/3 of the cocoons, and let them dry in the hot sun the silkworms inside die and these cocoons then can be harvested for the silk. The other 1/3 is allowed to develop and become the next generation of Bombyx mori moths.  

Stage 4

The 1/3 of the cocoons that are allowed to develop enters the adult stage and complete the life cycle of Bombyx mori. This stage is known as the imago stage and last 5 to 7 days. It is the reproductive stage where adults mate and females lay eggs. The moths are flightless and lack functional mouth parts, so are unable to consume nutrition.

Stage 5

The cocoons that are harvested for silk production are boiled in hot water and the silkworms’ removed Raw silk is bumpy and irregular. The completed cocoon is pulled from the mulberry bush and placed in a vat of boiling water, which separates the silk thread of the cocoon from the caterpillar inside. The cocoon is set aside to be later made into silk the silk worm larva inside is eaten and considered to be very tasty. The silk from Thailand's from these cocoons varies in color from light gold to very light green. The cocoon is comprised of one thread that is 500-1,500 meters long. A single filament is too thin to use alone so many are combined to make a thicker, more practical yarn.

Stage 6

The weavers wash these raw silk threads, bleach them, and then soak them in vats of hot dyes. Afterwards, they wash the silk thread again, stretch it, and put it through a final dying process. When that is finished, they wind the threads onto spools or drums in preparation for weaving using traditional hand operated looms.

Stage 7

Traditional Thai silk is hand woven by the woman in rural Thailand; it is a unique work of textile art. It is always made 100% by hand using wooden looms, the looms are about one meter in width and production is a slow processes. It takes a weaver several months time to produce 40’ of hand made silk. The final produce is not prefect but will have imperfection within it; these imperfections are an important part of the finished product.

Today we have a choice with silk items, the traditional hand made Thai Silk is still offered within the market but the costs of this product is vey high. Today, Traditional Thai Silk items are much more a form of art. With modern manafactoring processes, natural Thai Silk can be made on machine looms, and made made silk has become very high in quality.

Like many true crafts, Traditional Thai Silk Production is being replaced by modern ways, but the olds ways will always have a place as true works of art.

About the writer: As a American living and working within Thailand for the last several years I see many things that most westerners never will. Asian is a wonderful and unique place, traveling allows me to find wonderful products and items to offer for sale through my eBay Store Fishinglines for a great selection of products please visit it.

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