শাড়িটা খাঁটি সিল্ক কি না, কীভাবে বুঝব?

Three tests you can do in a shop. Touch: pure silk feels warm and dry, and when you crush a corner in your fist it wrinkles softly and recovers slowly; polyester feels cool and slippery and springs back flat. Light: silk has a soft, shifting lustre; art silk flashes like a mirror. Weight: a pure silk of the same size is usually a little heavier and hangs with more life.

The burn test is the sure one, on a single loose thread from the edge and only with the shop's permission: silk burns slowly, smells of burnt hair and leaves a crushable black ash; polyester melts into a hard bead and smells of plastic.

And ask. A shop should say "pure silk", "half-silk" or "art silk" without being pushed, and put it on the bill.