Hand Made Mulberry Silk Doonas - the ultimate in sleeping comfort.
Mulberry Silk by Exception is hand made from the highest quality 100% pure long strand Mulberry Silk and encased in a 100% pure cotton cover with a damask stripe to give you the most luxurious and peaceful night's sleep imaginable.
Mulberry Silk is famous for its incredible properties
Mulberry Silk is 100% organic, completely allergen free and contains 18 nourishing amino acids to calm the nervous system; making it ideal for those who suffer from Asthma, Arthritis, Eczema and allergies.
Luxuriously soft, lightweight and no cold spots!
Exception uses only the finest quality Mulberry Silk hand stretched to the full width of the doona and stitched to ensure even thickness and no cold spots. Unlike down-filled doonas which are usually big and bulky, silk is so soft and flexible that it naturally contours to the body giving you that comforting ‘tucked in’ feeling.
Exception’s Mulberry Silk is comparable in warmth to the highest quality Eiderdown filled doonas
Mulberry Silk has naturally insulating properties that keep you cool and comfortable in summer and warm and snug in winter. In fact the silk we use is comparable in warmth to that of the highest quality Eiderdown filled doonas making it an ideal gift for anyone, especially you and your family.
We’re so confident in the quality of our product…
Unlike other silk products on the market we are so confident with the quality of our product that we include a zipper so you can open up the doona and feel the quality of the silk inside. We also back our product with a 10 year manufacturer’s warranty.
"We recently purchased a king duvet from Sandy at the Brisbane Ekka, and we would like to let you know how happy we are with it.
From the very first night we slept better because it drapes so well and moulds to the contours of the body. It keeps us warm without making us hot and sweaty because of the lightness and breathability of the silk. It is not bulky and fits perfectly into the doona cover, draping well down the edges of the bed. We both agree that it was a great purchase and only wish we had discovered this type of doona sooner!"
Carol and Rod - Brisbane QLD August 2010
“I purchased my Mulberry Silk Duvet at this year’s Easter Show and I absolutely love it. Having not heard of silk doonas before I was a little sceptical as to whether it would be warm enough because it is so light compared to my old feather doona. It turns out to not only be warmer than my old doona but it also warms up much faster. Within a few minutes of jumping into bed I am snug as a bug in a rug. And it just feels so soft and luxurious to sleep in.” Liam, Sydney NSW, May 2010
FAQs
Q: What is silk? A: Silk is a fine soft thread produced by silkworms. It is light, very supple and constantly equalizing temperature. It is the least allergenic of all natural fibres. Several strands of thread are used to weave into fabric. Silk has long been considered the most luxurious of all fibres.
Q: How many types of silk are there? A: Silk filled doonas have been a long-time favourite for many generations of Chinese. Traditionally, an authentic silk doona uses only long stretched, Grade A, 100% mulberry silk floss fill, but there are now at least three types of silk floss used in silk doonas on the market:
Cotton-like short silk floss (low grade silk) This type of silk is actually a downgraded silk floss (among the lowest grades of silk floss) obtained from broken or waste filaments and damaged cocoons, and it is inferior in character to the reeled products. It is very short, non-adhesive, and it feels like cotton. When used in a silk doona, it normally requires a special machine to net the silk together and will be used in the deep part of the silk doona. A finished silk doona of this type normally has some long mulberry silk floss fill at the side-opener or on the top as a cover-up and the doona has to have stitching throughout to prevent the low-grade short/waste silk from shifting and creating holes.
Cube-type Silk (wild silk) Silk moths grown in Northern China produce this type of silk. These type of silk moths grow in the wild and feed on all kinds of leaves. The natural colour of this silk is dark grey and it requires special chemicals (which are harmful to health) in production to reduce the dark colour. The silk is thick, short and is not nearly as soft and elegant as Mulberry silk. Since this type of silk floss tends to adhere to each other in cube it is not easy to arrange them in an ideal structure for a silk doona. When used in a silk doona, this type of silk is typically used in the deep part of the silk doona and is covered with long mulberry silk.
Long, 100% Mulberry Silk Ideally all silk comforters ought to be made with 100% mulberry silk, especially silk produced in Spring. This type of silk is very soft, elegant and versatile. Silk is a natural protein fibre containing about 75% of actual fibre fibroin and about 25% sericin, which is a gummy protein that holds the filaments. Silk filaments are very fine and long-as much as 300-900 metres long. It has a very high degree of elongations. When it is dry the elongations vary from 10-25% and it will elongate as much as 33-35% when wet. This type of silk typically has a high natural lustre and sheen of a white or cream colour. It is one of the strongest fibres of 2.4 to 5.1 grams per denier. Silk has a relatively high standard moisture regain of 11%. At saturation the regain is 25-35%.
Q: How do I Identify between Good and Bad quality silk? A: There are at least five ways to identify a good silk:
(1) Physical Appearance: The best silk is in pearl white and it can reflect natural lights. The silk thread is pure and has very little broken or waste filaments. The silk is long and well aligned. An inferior silk is in pale white due to the use of bleach and other chemicals in production. It does not have the natural light reflection capability and looks dull. It normally is mixed with broken or waste filaments and the alignment is poor.
(2) Touch Test: Good silk feels very soft, smooth, and has a good elongation (elastic recovery). It does not have hard cubes or spots. An inferior silk feels rough and uneven, and it is mixed with fragments of damaged cocoons and broken or waste filaments.
(3) Smell the silk: Silk with an oily or rotten smell is inferior in quality.
(4) Burn test: Good silk floss is not burnable, and the flame will immediately die off when fire is taken off (the silk). The burned ashes will be loose and it smells like burned human hair.
(5) Flexibility and Elastic Recovery: The more flexibility the silk has the better the quality it is. Studies have shown that silk has a stronger flexibility than that of a steel wire with the same dimension. Good silk also has very good elongations while inferior silk has very bad flexibility and elastic recovery.
Q: How is a silk doona made? A: The best silk doonas are filled with Mulberry silk. Long silk filling is more expensive because they are directly produced from an oval-shape cocoon that is supposed to produce high quality silk fabric. The cocoon is first stretched into a large web, after that it is stretched to open even more into one layer for the filling of a silk-filled doona. It takes many layers and many cocoons to make a thick enough batting.
Q: Why choose a silk comforter? A: Most people decide to choose a silk doona for its warmth and also how incredibly soft and lightweight it is. Silk is one of the lightest and strongest natural fibres. Silk fabrics have a very high degree of heat retention capability and add a perfect layer of warmth. Silk absorbs moisture well and releases it quickly as it is fast drying. Natural silk is light, very supple and constantly equalizes temperature making it a perfect year round doona. It is also good for your complexion and your health. With the current trend towards healthy living, more and more people have chosen silk-filled doonas as a healthier alternative to down-filled doonas. It is said that silk is the least allergenic of the natural fibres.
Q: How to Choose A Good Silk Doona? There are a wide variety of silk doonas on the market of varying quality. Here are a few tips to help you pick the right one:
Silk doonas made out of cotton-like short silk floss are normally claimed to be 100% silk doonas or 100% silk quilts. Their prices are extremely low, and sometimes they are even lower than one third of what a Mulberry silk doona sells for. This type of silk doona normally requires box stitches and the silk floss fill inside is not layered evenly. It has no elastic recovery and does not have the smooth and elegant touching sensations.
Silk doonas made out of cube-type of silk floss (or wild silk floss) are usually marketed as 100% Mulberry Silk doonas or 100% Super Grade-A Silk Comforters (a false claim intended to cheat consumers). They are claimed to have contained either 1st Class or Grade-A (false claim) mulberry silk floss. The side-opener (for this type of silk doona) is usually shorter than 30cm in length, preventing consumers from checking the silk fill inside.
The price for such a silk doona is about two thirds of a Mulberry silk doona. The silk floss itself appears to look similar to that of a Mulberry silk floss but a closer look at it will reveal that the silk floss is not layered evenly, touching is rough, and its elastic recovery is very limited.
100% Grade-A mulberry silk—the best and most authentic for a silk doona. This type of silk doona is made out of 100% Grade-A, long mulberry silk floss and it normally has a side-opener larger than 70cm, enabling consumers to check deep inside the silk comforter. It is very soft, smooth, and elegant and has great elastic recovery.
Q: What are the Benefits of a Mulberry Silk Doona? A: Mulberry Silk by Exception uses only the finest, long strand, grade-A mulberry silk floss and are hand made with a perfect display of traditional and modern techniques. They will help you gain the following benefits:
(1) Preventing Cold during Sleep: Studies have proven that people catch colds mostly during sleep. When it is either too warm or not warm enough people tend to kick off or pull the doona away exposing the body to the cold temperature and consequently catching a cold. With a Mulberry Silk Doona you will feel cool in summer time and warm in winter, and it definitely helps to prevent you from catching a cold.
(2) Relieving the Heart from Heavy Pressure: A Mulberry Silk comforter is light but warm and you do not need to put an extra doona or blanket on top. Thus your heart and blood vessels will not have to sustain the pressure from a heavy load, enabling you to have a tight, sound, and healthy sleep.
(3) Helps get a restful sleep: Mulberry silk is arguably the softest and most healthy natural fibre. All Mulberry silk doonas are made with 100% grade-A Mulberry silk floss making them soft and warm; helping you fall sleep quickly.
(4) Helping to prevent arthritis and skin diseases: Mulberry silk is a natural protein fibre containing 75% of actual fibre fibroin. It can absorb moisture inside the doona quickly and keep the doona at an ideal moisture level, thus helping prevent arthritis and skin diseases. Medial studies have shown that mulberry silk contains 18 kinds of amino acids and various proteins that help blood circulation and digestion system during sleep. They help to vitalize skin, slowing down the aging process. In addition, these amino acids and proteins will act like a stabilizer, helping people to sleep better and thus better health.
Q: What care is required for my Silk doona? A: Usually a good silk doona can be used for 5 - 10 years if proper care is taken. Nothing too difficult, you just need to pay a little attention to the following.
Use a doona cover: Always use a removable cover to prevent the silk doona from dirt and stain so that the doona only needs to be cleaned occasionally.
Cleaning: The silk doona cannot be washed. If cleaning is required you need to take it to a professional dry cleaner
Warranty
Warranty: Mulberry Silk carries a 10 year manufacturer’s warranty against defects in materials and workmanship. This does not include general wear and tear. (learn more...)
Guarantee: Mulberry Silk is subject to our 14 day money back guarantee (learn more...)
