If you’ve been tempted to pull out your favorite silk pieces, but you’ve been put off by the worry of having to dry-clean them, don’t fret. That printed vintage scarf you bought for $20. The little black slip dress hanging in your closet. The pillowcase you bought to protect your hair. They can all be safely cleaned at home with the right techniques.Because of its lustrous look and production methods, silk is often thought of as a precious material that’s too delicate to wear in our everyday lives. Whitney Crutchfield, a professor at Fashion Institute of Technology, attributes this to the cultural and historical context of silk, which made it more expensive than other fibers.It all starts somewhere a bit unexpected: silkworm secretion.