Choosing the Best Pillowcase for Thin or Fine Hair

You spend nearly a third of your time in bed, with your hair in direct contact with the fabric of your pillowcase. When it comes to fine or thin hair, not all pillowcases are created equal. In fact, some pillowcases actually cause frizz, damage, drying and breakage, which not only harms your hair, but also counteracts all the hard work you do to keep it healthy.

At Mulberry Park Silks, we work to educate our clients about all health, beauty, and wellness benefits of silk. If you have fine or thin hair, read on to learn why you should be sleeping on a pure mulberry silk pillowcase for a great night of beauty sleep.

How Pillowcase Fabric Can Damage Fine or Thin Hair

Most of us don't think too hard about the fabric used on our pillowcase. But it matters quite a bit -- particularly if you're sleeping on a cotton pillowcase (as most people do).

Dryness: Cotton is a plant-based fiber, and is known for its absorbency; cotton actually dries out your hair (and skin) and pulls moisture away while you sleep. This has the potential to damage every hair type (including thicker hair or curly hair) but can be devastating for thin hair, as your hair and scalp must retain natural moisture to grow.

Friction: When you sleep on a cotton pillowcase, there is a lot of friction involved. Even a high thread count sateen weave cotton can pull and tug at your hair shaft. This leads to tangles, frizz, knots and breakage.

You can learn more here about why silk fabric outperforms cotton in these and other important areas.

Pillowcase Fabrics that are Better for Your Hair than Cotton

Happily, there are plenty of other options for pillowcase fabric that won't dry and damage thin or fine hair like cotton, including bamboo, satin and silk.

• Bamboo: Bamboo fiber has been harvested for nearly 150 years, but has only been used for cloth manufacturing since the early part of this century. Bamboo is softer than cotton, and so won't tug and tear at hair. However, manufacturing bamboo fabric can be very time consuming, labor intensive, and not particularly eco-friendly.

• Microfiber: A pillowcase made of microfiber is soft and gentle on hair, but is made of polyester. Microfiber is also quite absorbent (that's why microfiber towels are good for quickly drying wet hair) and so may be less than ideal for helping hair retain moisture.

• Satin: A satin pillowcase is definitely smooth to lay on, but it has no natural properties whatsoever. In fact, satin is a man-made fabric woven from polyester or nylon, both of which are derived from oil or petroleum.

• Silk: A silk pillowcase is the ideal choice for anyone with fine or thin hair. Silk is a natural, protein-based fiber that is gentle on fine and thin hair while helping hair and scalp retain natural moisture.

Read on to learn more about why a silk pillowcase is the best choice for fine and thin hair (and learn more about the differences between silk and satin fabric here).

Benefits of Silk Pillowcases for Your Fine or Thin Hair

More than looking and feeling luxurious (which it absolutely does!) silk is wonderful for your fine and thin hair. Here's why:

Silk is friction free. The fibers of a cotton pillowcase, even one with a very smooth sateen weave, can tug and pull at your hair. This contributes to breakage and hair loss. Silk fabric is friction free; your hair will glide across the surface of the pillowcase. This means you'll wake with less breakage and frizz, as well as fewer tangles (which can cause more trauma to your hair as you comb or brush them out).

Silk helps hair retain moisture. Unlike cotton, which is absorbent and pulls moisture out of your hair, silk actually helps your hair retain natural moisture. Like your hair itself, silk is a protein-based fiber. Silk fiber contains vital amino acids and a protein called fibroin that moisturizes your hair and scalp and may even boost hair growth. Many salon-quality hair products are made with fibroin for this very reason.

Silk is soft and comfortable. No other fabric can compare to the feel of a pure silk pillowcase from Mulberry Park Silks. Our charmeuse weave is soft and lustrous to the look and touch

How to Choose the Best Silk Pillowcase

There are several important factors to consider when buying a silk pillowcase. Along with size and color preference, you should purchase only genuine, high-quality silk that is certified to be safe and environmentally friendly. All Mulberry Park Silks products are made from the highest grade, 100 percent pure mulberry silk. Our collection of silk pillowcases and sheets are independently certified to be free from any toxins or chemicals and are safe even for babies. To learn more about what to look for when shopping for a silk pillowcase, read our blog "Beware of these 10 Things when Shopping for a Real Silk Pillowcase".

Choosing the best pillowcase for your thin and fine hair also means selecting the appropriate momme weight, which is similar to thread count in cotton bedding. At Mulberry Park, our silk pillowcases range from 19 to 30 momme. As the momme weight increases, the silk is heavier, denser in weave, and more costly. The individual fibers in higher momme silk are also thicker, which adds to the softness. You can learn how to pick the best momme weight pillowcase for your needs and budget by reading our blog "Silk Pillowcase Guide: How To Choose the Best Momme Silk Weight".

Silk Pillowcase Care

There are lots of reasons to feel good about sleeping on a silk pillowcase if you have thin or fine hair. Here's one more: silk is easy to care for! Your silk pillowcase can be easily hand or machine washed in cool water and hung to dry. We recommend using a detergent formulated specially for silk, and mesh laundry bags to protect your silk items in the washing machine.