Silk is one of the most beautiful and luxurious fabrics in the world. Discovered in China around 2700 BC, the production of it was generally unknown to the general public. As a probable result, silk was regarded as pricey a commodity as jade and other spices. So even though your silk shirts may not have been imported from China, we understand your desire to keep these expensive items in top-notch condition. After all, there's nothing quite like a silk shirt to define a professional look or sophisticated night on the town.

Question is - how do you keep silk shirts looking new?

First things first - don't wear silk shirts without some type of protection without sweat. It's an oxymoron for sure - considering that silk makes a great heat insulator. Protect your precious wardrobe from permanent sweat stains by wearing perspiration pads and/or other protective under-garments.

Second, hand wash your silk shirts instead of having them dry-cleaned. Dry-cleaning is often the first recommended method of cleaning silk shirts, however the solutions used in dry-cleaning can actually do more harm than good. These chemicals can emphasize existing stains, inadvertantly create new ones, or even weaken the fibers that hold your silk shirts together.

Hand washing silk shirts prevents the damage caused by dry-cleaning because you just don't use the same chemicals. A 20-minute soak in warm water and mild soap is all you need to remove odors and new stains. Rinse with warm water, lay flat between two towels to dry, and squeeze out excess water. That's it!

You don't need any fancy dry cleaning machines or expensive chemical procedure to manage your silk attire. When dry, simply keep them folded in a drawer and keep your silk shirts away from hangers. Even hangers can damage silk shirts by leaving horrid hanger marks on them. Fortunatly, you flattening these marks by using an iron with a low-setting.