Smooth Operator

On the outskirts of Chiang Mai is a silk factory where they not only produce a variety of silk products but the fabric to make these products.  I've always wondered how silk was made and I guess I could have Googled it but never did.  No need to anymore because I got to see the process first-hand: from preparing the cocoons to spooling the fiber to weaving fabric.

I guess the silk worms have got it made in these factories.  The animal rights activists would be thrilled, for silk worms are treated to a luxurious life to produce cocoons. For instance, their environment is kept at controlled temperatures through all life cycles and the worms are fed crushed mulberry leaves around the clock, allowing them to multiply their weight 10,000 times within a month. 

Each silkworm cocoon is made up of a single fiber that is 600 to 900 meters long. Five to eight strands of the filament that are unwound from a silk worm cocoon are used to create silk thread. The silk thread is then used to create silk fabric.

 

Did you know that Thai silk is usually soft but has a relatively coarse texture with uneven, slightly knotty threads? It has a magnificent, rich, exotic beauty and, with proper care, can last a century or more. Chinese silk, on the other hand, tends to be smooth and satiny. Indian silk tends to be softer but more crinkly and uses richer colors. Italian silk tends to strive for a refined and elegant look but this can easily be accomplished anywhere using mechanized weaving.

After witnessing every stage of creating the fabric, visitors are escorted into a store housing thousands of handmade items made right on the premises. The store seemed to go on and on displaying everything from clothes to home linens and even home furnishings.

An outdoor cafe is conveniently located on the way to the parking lot for those who simply must have an espresso after a strenuous afternoon of shopping. Now if this cafe were in Korea, I would say that silk worm in lava would be on the menu as a snack item... but then again, maybe they wouldn't have it on the menu because that would eat into their profits =)