OEKO-TEX® Certified
Independently tested silk
Silk Duvets
Pure mulberry silk-filled duvets designed to cocoon the body without weighing it down.
Natural · Sleep · Ritual
Choose Your Weight
Each Sensoire duvet is available in four silk-fill weights. Choose the one that suits your bedroom, then select your preferred shell below. Your choice will carry over to the product page.
Not sure? Start with 4 Seasons. Every weight is available in all four duvets below.
Grade 6A Mulberry Silk
Pure long-strand fill
Made by Hand
Hand-stretched silk fill
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Fast, tracked delivery
14-Day Returns
Straightforward returns process
From the Journal
How a Sensoire Silk Duvet Is Made
A silk duvet looks quiet and simple: a pale shell, a soft outline, a light layer resting over the body. What shapes its feel, evenness and ability to stay neatly arranged is hidden inside.
Eight steps, from hand-stretching long-strand mulberry silk to cross-layering, shell selection and final inspection.
Read the journal →The Craft
The Silk, Made by Hand
From cocoon to silk batt · Crafted by hand
Slower by Choice, Better by Hand
The silk inside every SENSOIRE duvet is prepared by hand. Made to our specifications by a long-standing manufacturing partner, whole double cocoons are worked through a careful sequence, with no chemical degumming agents or machine-shredded filling. The long-strand mulberry silk is opened and layered by hand, helping it retain its natural loft, breathability and resilience.
Silk moves with the body
The raw material
The pure, long-strand mulberry silk that fills every SENSOIRE duvet, drawn straight from the cocoon.
From Cocoon to Silk Batt
01
Hand-Sorted Double Cocoons
We use only plump, first-season double cocoons, sorted by hand and never industrially bleached, keeping their natural matte-ivory shell. A single double cocoon yields up to a kilometre of hollow, naturally breathable silk.
02
Gently Boiled Over a Wood Fire
The cocoons are slowly boiled in 80°C mountain-spring water with natural plant ash to loosen the sericin. No chemical degumming agents are used. The silk is then rinsed five times until it is soft and supple.
03
Opened by Hand Into Silk Caps
Artisans open each cocoon in warm water with their fingertips and stretch five to six shells into a silk cap as thin as a cicada's wing. No machine presses the fibre at this stage, so its natural elasticity stays intact.
04
Dried in Soft, Diffused Daylight
The caps are hung to dry in gentle, north-facing daylight, away from harsh midday sun, so the silk protein never dries out. After drying, they are as light and fluffy as a cloud, with the faint, clean scent of raw silk.
05
Hand-Stretched by Four Artisans
Four artisans stretch each cap evenly from all four corners, crosswise and lengthwise, to form a wide silk batt. For a 2 kg duvet, the silk is arranged in 35 layers, creating a three-dimensional mesh that holds together without glue and resists clumping or thinning.
06
Secured Within the Finished Duvet
The finished batt is then fixed inside its shell according to each duvet's design: hand tacked at discreet points, or box quilted into defined sections. Either way, the aim is the same, keeping the silk evenly arranged in everyday use without pressing away its loft.
The Silk Difference
Why a silk-filled duvet
A mulberry silk duvet provides warmth without feeling heavy. It is breathable, naturally temperature-balancing and light against the skin. See how silk compares with other fillings and how to recognise genuine silk quality.
Fillings compared
Mulberry silk, down, cashmere or synthetic fibre: how the common duvet fillings differ.
| Filling | Mulberry silkOur fill | Down (90/10) | Cashmere | Synthetic |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fibre | Long, regular structure | Short | Short | Long, regular structure |
| Warmth | Very good | Very good | Very good | Fair |
| Moisture management | Very good | Fair | Good | Poor |
| Breathability | Very good | Very good | Very good | Poor |
| Temperature balance | Very good | Good | Good | Poor |
| Skin compatibility allergy sufferers |
Very good. No known allergies to silk. | Good. Less suited to animal-hair allergy sufferers. | Good. A natural animal-hair fibre. | Fair |
| Lifespan | Long, 15 to 20 years | Long, approx. 10 years | Long, approx. 10 years | Short, approx. 5 years |
| Environmental impact | Good. Natural and biodegradable. | Good | Good | Poor |
How to recognise genuine quality
Sensoire mulberry silk compared with lower-grade mulberry silk and wild silk.
| Quality criterion | Sensoire mulberry silkGrade 6A | Mass-market mulberry silk | Wild silk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fibre length | Long-strand, hand-drawn. Continuous and unbroken, up to 1,200 m, never chopped. The longer the fibre, the softer and more supple the duvet. | Chopped short floss, approx. 30 cm | Short |
| Colour | Pearl white with a soft sheen | Artificially white; the silk is often bleached | Yellow to brown |
| Fineness | Very soft and smooth, finer than human hair | Feels slightly coarser and harder | Feels coarse and hard |
| Scent | Subtly tart, from sericin, the cocoon's natural protective protein; it fades over time. Sericin is a soluble protein with a positive effect on the skin. | Often smells of chemical solvents that can trigger allergies | Often smells of chemical solvents that can trigger allergies |
| Elasticity | Very resilient and elastic | Less elastic | Less elastic |
| Fill structure | More evenly filled and more voluminous, no cold zones. Perfectly enveloped with every movement: warm in winter, pleasantly cool in the heat. | Less even filling, cold zones possible; more filling is needed for the same warmth | Uneven structure; the duvet needs heavy quilting and loses suppleness |
| Quilting | Fine square box-quilting holds the even fill in place, for consistent warmth corner to corner and no bunching. | Heavier quilting required | Heavy quilting required |
| Cover | 80s pure cotton sateen, or a pure silk satin shell | Often cotton or blended fabric | Often cotton or blended fabric |
Every Sensoire silk duvet is filled with 100% Grade 6A long-strand mulberry silk in a breathable cotton sateen or pure silk shell, OEKO-TEX Standard 100 certified and made entirely by hand.
Choose your silk duvetGuidance
How to Choose
Everything you need to pick the right silk duvet
What is a silk-filled duvet?
A silk-filled duvet, also called a silk comforter or silk doona, is a duvet filled with pure mulberry silk floss instead of down, feather or polyester. The silk sits inside a breathable cotton shell, giving you natural warmth that is light, breathable and temperature-regulating, and that drapes closer to the body than a lofty down duvet.
Are Sensoire silk duvets really handmade, and where are they made?
Yes, entirely by hand, in Suzhou, China, the historic home of mulberry silk, where the fibre has been reeled and woven for centuries. Every duvet is made by a long-standing partner to our specification in eight steps: whole double cocoons are sorted by hand, gently boiled in spring water with plant ash rather than chemical degumming agents, opened by hand into silk caps, dried in soft daylight, then stretched by four artisans into layer after layer of continuous silk and fixed inside the shell with hand-set stitching, or with box quilting guided by hand at the machine. No machine-shredded floss, no bleaching. Each finished duvet is checked before it leaves, and any fault in the making is covered by our 14-day returns. You can watch the process in the video above.
How can I tell real long-strand silk from short fibre or a blend?
Open it and look. Every Sensoire duvet has a discreet zip onto the fill, so you can part the shell and see the silk for yourself. Long-strand silk lies in wide, continuous, pearl-white sheets that hold together when you lift them. Chopped short floss or a blend looks lumpy, separates between your fingers and clumps after a season. Real silk also has a faint, clean scent from sericin, the cocoon's own protein, which fades with airing. Two things should be stated on any silk duvet you consider: the fill weight in g/m², and an independent certificate. Ours carries OEKO-TEX Standard 100. A price that looks too good is usually the third clue.
Cotton sateen shell or pure silk shell: which should I choose?
The fill is identical in all four Sensoire duvets. What changes is the shell, and with it the price. The three cotton duvets hold the silk in an 80s pure cotton sateen shell at 400 thread count, finished with white piping, black piping or square box quilting. The pure silk duvet wraps the same fill in a 22 momme mulberry silk shell. Choose cotton if the duvet will always live inside a cover, which is what we recommend: it is breathable, quiet and the practical choice, and once covered the two feel the same over you. Choose the silk shell if you want silk itself against the skin and the lightest possible drape. Whichever you choose, wash the cover, never the duvet.
Silk, down, wool or bamboo: which filling suits me?
Down traps the most still air, so it is lofty and warm, but it can overheat a warm sleeper, the fill drifts to one end, and quills can work through the shell. Wool handles moisture well and feels substantial, closer to a weighted blanket, and sits higher over the body. Bamboo-filled duvets are light and cool, and mostly made for summer. Silk is the middle ground. It does not rely on trapped air, so it feels less stuffy when you are warm, yet it insulates when the room is cool, and it lies lighter and closer than wool. Because it comes in four fill weights, the same fibre covers a warm summer bedroom and a cool winter one. Choose down for maximum loft, wool for weight and spring, and silk for a close, quiet layer that breathes.
Why does a silk duvet cost more?
Long-strand silk cannot be machine filled. Four artisans hand-stretch every layer, and that labour is most of the price. It is also the reason the fill stays where it is put instead of drifting into one end of the shell.
Set it against the life of the duvet: 15 to 20 years for silk, around 10 for down, around 5 for synthetic. The duvet you sleep under in year fifteen still lies flat and even.
Is a silk duvet good for hot sleepers and night sweats?
Yes. Mulberry silk is naturally thermoregulating and moisture-wicking, so it releases excess heat and humidity instead of trapping it like down or synthetic fillings. That makes a silk-filled duvet one of the best options for hot sleepers, menopausal night sweats and anyone who overheats, while cold sleepers stay cosy because silk holds warmth when you need it. For warm sleepers, start with the Summer weight at 180 g/m².
Is it suitable during menopause and hot flushes?
Hot flushes and night sweats are common through menopause, and many women who slept cold all their lives find they now wake up hot. Bedding cannot change the cause, but it can change how the night feels. Silk takes in moisture, around 30% of its own weight, and releases it again, so a flush is less likely to leave you soaked and awake, and the duvet does not hold the damp against you the way dense synthetics can. Start with the Summer 180 g/m² weight, or the 4 Seasons pair so you can drop a layer as your nights change. If you share the bed, two duvets in two weights end the tug of war. See our edit for night sweats and menopause.
Which weight should I choose?
Sensoire silk duvets come in four weights, measured by fill density:
| Weight | Fill | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Summer | 180 g/m² | Hot sleepers and warm nights |
| Mid Season | 320 g/m² | Spring, autumn and milder winters |
| Winter | 500 g/m² | Cold sleepers and cold bedrooms |
| 4 Seasons | 180 + 320 g/m² | Year-round, two duvets in one |
The 4 Seasons option is the most versatile. It pairs the Summer and Mid Season duvets, used on their own as the weather turns, or tied together into a 500 g/m² layer for deep winter. If you are unsure, the 4 Seasons set suits the widest range of bedrooms. In UK terms, read the weights loosely as light, medium and heavy tog; silk is not rated in tog, so treat that as a guide, not a specification.
What tog is a silk duvet?
Silk duvets are measured by fill density in g/m², also written gsm, rather than by tog. If you are used to shopping in tog, the closest equivalents are: Summer 180 g/m² is about 2.5 to 4.5 tog, Mid Season 320 g/m² about 6 to 9 tog, Winter 500 g/m² about 10 to 13 tog, and the 4 Seasons pair tied together about 12 to 13.5 tog.
Read those as an equivalence guide, not a specification. Tog measures insulation on its own and says nothing about how a fibre handles moisture, which is why two duvets rated at the same tog can feel very different by morning.
Is silk only for summer, or is it warm enough for a cold sleeper?
Silk is not a summer-only fibre. It insulates efficiently for its thickness, so every weight feels warmer than it looks, and the Winter 500 g/m² fill is made for cold sleepers and bedrooms of 15 to 19 °C. What changes is the feel. Silk does not dome the way down does, so the same warmth arrives as a thinner, closer layer that follows your shoulders rather than floating above them. If you like a substantial, blanket-like press, take one weight up from what you would normally buy, or choose the 4 Seasons pair and sleep under both layers in winter. In rooms below 15 °C, add a light blanket over the winter weight, as you would with any duvet.
Can two sleepers use different duvet weights in the same bed?
Yes. For couples with different warmth preferences, using two single duvets can be an excellent solution. Follow the Scandinavian habit of one bed and two single duvets, each side in its own weight, for example a Summer 180 for the warm sleeper and a Mid Season 320 for the cooler one. A shared bedspread keeps the bed looking whole. On a king-size bed, two doubles rather than two singles give each of you room to spread out. Fold each duvet in half lengthways and lay them side by side, with the bedspread over the top by day. If one of you tends to gather the duvet, sizing up one step also helps.
How is a duvet that is never washed kept clean?
The cover is the washable layer, and the duvet itself is never washed. Sweat, skin and everyday dust stop at the cover, which you change and wash like any bedding. The silk inside contains sericin, a natural protein that resists dust mites, mould and microbes, and water or high heat would break that protection down and mat the fibres. So the duvet needs only air: hang it outdoors in gentle sunlight for about an hour each side, once or twice a year, to refresh the loft. Never machine wash, soak or tumble dry it. For a deep clean, use a dry cleaner experienced with silk duvets. Cared for this way, it is made to last 15 to 20 years.
Which duvet cover should I use, and does the cover change how cool it sleeps?
It changes it more than most people expect. Heat and moisture leaving the duvet have to pass through the cover, so a cover that breathes lets the silk do its work, and one that does not can leave you in a pocket of heat under the very same duvet. Choose a breathable cover in a natural or plant-based fibre: linen, silk, our bamboo lyocell, cotton percale or cotton sateen. Avoid polyester, microfibre and polycotton, which hold heat and damp against you. If a duvet that felt cool on its own suddenly feels warm, look at the cover first. A cover also keeps the silk clean and the duvet in place, held by ties at each corner and eight or more around the edge.
Which duvet size do I need, and which cover size?
Match the duvet to your bed and your existing cover. As a guide: single 140 x 200 cm, double 200 x 200 cm, king 240 x 220 cm, super king 260 x 240 cm. The full range runs 135 x 200, 140 x 200, 155 x 220, 160 x 210, 200 x 200, 200 x 220, 240 x 220 and 260 x 240 cm, so most standard European covers have a direct match. If you share a bed and one of you gathers the duvet, size up one step, or use two duvets. For the cover, match the duvet size or go a centimetre or two larger: much larger and the duvet travels, smaller and the loft flattens at the edges. Ties at each corner and eight or more around the duvet hold it in place inside the cover.
What if something spills on it?
Act at once and keep it small. Blot, do not rub, then dab the mark with a little cold water on a clean cloth, working from the edge inwards, without soaking the silk or the shell. No bleach, no wringing, and no heat, which sets a mark. Let the area dry flat away from radiators and direct sun, then air the duvet. For anything larger than a hand, or a mark that will not lift, take it to a dry cleaner experienced with silk duvets rather than washing it yourself: water and agitation mat the fill. A washable cover, always on, is what keeps this from becoming a problem in the first place.
How do I store the duvet out of season?
Air it first, then store it dry. Give it an hour each side in gentle sunlight, let it cool, and fold it loosely into the satin storage bag it arrived in, which keeps dust off without sealing the silk in. Keep it in a dry cupboard away from heat, damp and direct light. It can be pressed down a little to save space, by up to about 40% of its full loft, but never vacuum-packed flat: long-strand silk holds its loft because the layers are stretched open, and months of full compression flatten them. When the season turns, shake it out and hang it for an afternoon and the loft returns. The 4 Seasons pair makes this simple, since one layer is always in use and only the other is stored.
Is silk bedding good for allergies and sensitive skin?
Yes. Mulberry silk is naturally hypoallergenic and resistant to dust mites, mould and mildew, and every SENSOIRE duvet is OEKO-TEX Standard 100 certified free from harmful substances. The breathable cotton shell is gentle against sensitive skin, making it a good choice for allergy-prone and eczema-prone sleepers.
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