Are Silk Pillowcases Really Worth It? We Put Them to the Test

These days, wherever we (toss &) turn, there’s someone raving about silk pillowcases, so we decided to try them out for ourselves. We’re always searching for hair hacks to make our lives easier and this one might have been under our nose (uh, or head) this whole time. Can waking up with creaseless, frizz-less, smooth hair just be one pillowcase away?

Two of our editors with completely different hair types put Slip Silk Pillowcases to the test. Kathryn has fine, curly/wavy, color-processed hair with greasy roots and dry ends and usually sleeps on a linen pillowcase. Nurain on the other hand has fine, straight hair with greasy roots and typically sleeps on a standard cotton pillowcase. Both of them slept on silk pillowcases for five nights, and here’s what went down.

Day 1: Both editors washed and air-dried their hair earlier in the day and went to bed excited to see if sleeping on the silk pillowcase would preserve their hair.

Wavy/curly hair: “I normally wake up with a total rat’s nest of snarls, frizz and chunks of straight hair that lost their curl overnight, but I was actually pretty amazed with how not snarled and tangled my hair was after a night on the silk pillowcase. My usual lion’s mane was nothing more than a minor case of bedhead, which I could easily tame with a few spritzes of water and my normal styling products. Color me impressed.” —Kathryn

Straight hair: “Not only did the silk pillowcase make going to bed feel extra luxe , but I also woke up to a more voluminous head of hair. Usually, my already fine hair somehow manages to get flatter overnight, but I was pleasantly surprised to see my hair maintain more of its volume the next morning. I wouldn’t say it added volume but it definitely didn’t take it away either—I’ll take it. —Nurain

Day 2: Our editors didn’t wash their hair to see if the pillowcase would help them go longer between washes.

Wavy/curly hair: “I was curious to see if sleeping on the silk pillowcase would help in my lifelong quest of achieving the mythical ‘Day 3 Hair.’ My hair did look better than normal when I woke up—much less frizzy and with fewer snarls that I have to painstakingly untangle by hand. My hair was still pretty oily, so I guess the pillowcase didn’t do much in combating third-day greasy roots. But without my usual snarls and frizz halo to fight, it was nothing a little (okay, a lot of) dry shampoo couldn’t fix.” —Kathryn

Straight hair: “My second-day hair felt a lot softer and smoother, but alas, it did not look (or feel) any less greasy than usual. It was much less tangled with fewer knots to comb out in the morning which led to less breakage, for sure. With fine hair, I’ll save every strand that I can.”—Nurain

Day 3: Our editors washed their hair right before bed and slept with damp hair.

Wavy/curly hair: “Usually for me, going to bed with damp hair is a huge mistake—I wake up with lumpy, lifeless waves. So I was curious to see if the silk pillowcase would help at all. When I woke up, my hair was unbelievably silky—I couldn’t believe how smooth it was to the touch. I didn’t get much in the way of curl or volume, but that wasn’t a huge surprise, given my hair dried while my head was smashed into a pillow. I probably won’t repeat this experiment, but the results were better than I expected.”

Straight hair: “I usually try to avoid sleeping with damp hair, no matter what. It usually leads to unwanted frizz and strangely-placed waves and creases that no quick styling can save, so this definitely made me a bit nervous. But, I was pleasantly surprised to wake up to frizz-free, crease-free hair! Being able to shower at night and head straight to bed without waiting for my hair to dry? Total gamechanger!”—Nurain

Day 4: Our editors headed to bed with styled hair to see if the pillowcase would maintain or extend the life of the styling.

Wavy/curly hair: “I wanted to see how well the silk pillowcase would maintain my blowout—blowouts usually don’t last overnight for me, no matter what I do. After a night sleeping on the silk pillowcase, my blowout looked pretty good! Not completely preserved, but much better than it normally would. My hair still retained a fair amount of the volume and curl pattern and had more of a tousled, beachy effect rather than ‘I just got caught in a tornado.’”—Kathryn

Straight hair: “Today, I opted for some loose waves in my hair using my T3 curler—I have super silky hair that doesn’t hold well no matter what I do, especially overnight, so I was curious to see if the silk pillowcase would change that (thus changing my life). Sad to report that my life was not completely changed, but it did improve slightly. The waves didn’t completely stick overnight, but the next morning, thanks to smoother, frizz-free hair, I was able to spritz in some dry shampoo and head out without any additional styling or heat damage.”—Nurain

Day 5: Our editors tested for overall hair and skin health.

Wavy/curly hair: “When I woke up on Day 5, I checked my pillowcase for strands of hair. As someone with fine hair that can lack volume, I’m a little sensitive about how much hair I lose throughout the day. With my normal pillowcase, I can usually find four or five strands of hair that fell out during the night, but with the silk pillowcase, I only found one. One little strand! I tested for tangles by running a wide-tooth comb through my hair. As a curly-headed person, I rarely use a hairbrush, but I wanted to see if I had fewer tangles with the silk pillowcase than with my normal bedding. I was able to work the comb through my hair with only a few minor snags—a huge surprise for me, considering that I can barely get my fingers through my hair on a normal day.” —Kathryn

Straight hair: “The added smoothness and softness from the silk pillowcases gave my hair a much shinier and healthier appearance. It was noticeably easier to manage and required a lot less time, effort, and styling—total lifesaver especially during the week when I’m always on the go. Bonus: I also noticed some extra skin benefits—that’s right, no random breakouts throughout the week!”—Nurain

It’s official: both of our editors now swear by silk pillowcases. Ready to maximize your beauty sleep? Try out Slip Silk Pillowcase for yourself. In the meantime, we’ll be sleeping on silk from here on out.