For women, silky pillowcases are touted as a beauty secret, the key to smooth hair, unwrinkled skin and a general sense of everyday luxury. For men, silky pillowcases are more evocative of Austin Powers. But it truly doesn’t have to be this way: Frizz-free hair and acne-less skin needs no gender.
Silk sheets are a bachelor-pad cliche, a product for men who design their lives around the fantasy of constantly bringing home women and impressing them with Dionysian surroundings. While some part of me admires the aesthetic, I’m not calling for the full silk spread. Instead, you need only one silk pillowcase. Just one!
While authentic silk pillowcases can be pricey, with ones from brands like SilkenPure or Slip averaging around $85 a piece, satin and other silk-like materials can be much more affordable. A set of two satin pillowcases goes for $15 on Amazon. The quality may not be exactly the same and some say they get a bit hotter in the night, but they’ll still make a difference.
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Beyond being soft and cozy, both silk and satin have some real benefits in pillow-case form. Their softness translates to less friction that could otherwise lead to frizz or breakage of hair. While cotton might feel relatively smooth, it’s rough enough to cause micro-tears on the skin. For people with acne, this can increase inflammation and cause further breakouts. Cotton is also a much more absorbent material than silk or satin, meaning it holds more of the oils your skin and hair produce, therefore putting those oils back on you every time you sleep. Though research on the topic is limited, a clinical trial from Wake Forest University found that people who used a “silk-like” polyester-blend pillowcase had less acne than those who used a 100 percent cotton one.
Plenty of Reddit threads in groups like r/SkincareAddiction attest to the powers of silky pillowcases, too. “I’ve invested in some silk pillow cases as well and I feel like I wake up looking like a movie star as opposed to some sort of creature of the night,” Nyxn12 wrote five years ago. “My skin is so much more hydrated, I don’t get any creases in my face, I swear my wrinkles are less pronounced, my hair looks amazing (and doesn’t get as tangled) and I don’t have any red patches or swelling on my face. Can’t recommend them enough!”
Fellas, doesn’t that sound like something you’d like to experience? We all deserve a little opulence. Don’t let the glaring omittance of “best silk pillowcase” listicles from men’s magazines compared to women’s fool you — silky pillowcases are for everyone.
Magdalene Taylor
Magdalene Taylor is a staff writer at MEL. She covers internet culture, sex and the online adult industry. She lives in Brooklyn but is from God's Country, Western Massachusetts.
