I bought my first Lunya set the way most people probably do: out of mild embarrassment. I was a 34-year-old woman still sleeping in a stretched-out college tee and the bottoms of pajamas whose tops had died years ago. Ironically, that is almost exactly the origin story of the brand itself, which I only learned later. So this is the honest version of a Lunya review — what the washable silk actually feels like after a few months of real nights, where the $188 price tag earns its keep, and the two things nobody warns you about before you click buy.
Quick disclosure up front: some links below are affiliate links. If you buy through them I may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. It does not change what I say about wrinkles or sizing.
Is Lunya worth it?
For hot sleepers, yes. Lunya’s signature set is 100% washable mulberry silk that naturally regulates temperature, so you stop waking up overheated at 3 a.m. At $178–$238 it’s a genuine splurge, and it’s sold as a fixed-size set. But the fabric quality and the suede-soft hand justify the price if you sleep warm and hate fussy dry-clean-only care.
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What is Lunya, and who is behind it?
Lunya is a Santa Monica luxury sleepwear brand that Ashley Merrill started building from her living room in 2012 and formally launched in 2014. The catalyst was almost comically relatable. She caught her reflection one night in her husband’s old frat T-shirt and rolled-up boxer briefs and decided grown women deserved sleepwear that felt as good as it looked. (Her husband, for trivia’s sake, is Marc Merrill, the Riot Games co-founder.)
What made Lunya unusual for its time was the decision to sell online only for its first five years, before direct-to-consumer was the default. The brand has had a bumpy stretch lately, including a 2024 restructuring, but the product itself never lost the plot. Today the range covers sleep sets, robes, dresses, intimates and bedding, in a stack of proprietary fabrics: Washable Silk, Silksweats™ (a silk-cotton blend), Slumberknit™, organic Pima cotton and a handful of seasonal weaves like seersucker and linen.
The hero product, the one Lunya is famous for and the one I’m reviewing, is the Washable Silk Set: a racer-back tank and pull-on shorts in 100% mulberry silk. Mine is the Tulip Back version, $188, currently sitting at 4.5 out of 5 across 152 reviews on the site.
The fabric is the whole point
Here’s the thing about silk pajamas: most “silk” sleepwear is either thin, shiny polyester pretending to be silk, or real silk that you’re terrified to wash. Lunya’s pitch is that you get genuine mulberry silk you can throw in the machine. After living with it, the fabric claim is the part that holds up best.
Two qualities stand out. First, the hand. This isn’t the slippery, cheap-lingerie shine I expected. It’s a matte, almost suede-like silk crepe that’s lightweight but has real body to it. Second, and this is the reason I’d buy it again, is temperature. Mulberry silk is naturally thermoregulating, and I’m a textbook hot sleeper who used to wake up two or three times a night kicking the duvet off. In the Lunya set I mostly don’t. That single change is what makes me forgive the price.
One small design detail I now can’t live without: the shorts have tiny silicone grip dots inside the waistband. They hold the waistband in place without digging in. It sounds trivial until you’ve worn every other pair of pajama shorts that slowly migrate up your torso by morning.
The good and the not-so-good
I don’t trust reviews with perfectly balanced pro/con lists, because real products aren’t balanced. The Lunya set is lopsided: a couple of genuinely standout strengths, and a few annoyances that are real but liveable.
What I love
- Thermoregulating silk that actually keeps hot sleepers cool
- Matte, suede-like hand — not cheap and shiny
- Silicone waistband grips that stay put all night
- Machine washable, no dry cleaning
- bluesign®-approved dyes
What bugs me
- It’s expensive: $178–$238 for one set
- Sold as a set, so you can’t size top and bottom separately
- Silk wrinkles and needs a quick steam
- First machine wash left it slightly stiff for a wear or two
Sizing: the thing I wish I’d known
This is my single biggest gripe, so read this before you order. The set is sold as one size, but the top and the bottom don’t run the same. The tank is cut generously and tends to run oversized, while the shorts fit true to size. Because you buy them together, you can’t go down a size on the bottom and up on the top.
If you’re between sizes or carry your size differently top to bottom, this matters. After a big dinner I found the small shorts left a faint band mark on my stomach, when I’d happily have worn the top in a small and the shorts in a medium. My advice: size for your hips and bottom half, and accept that the tank will be relaxed. If you’re truly in-between, the relaxed top is the safer error to make.
How to wash Lunya silk without wrecking it
“Washable” is doing some quiet heavy lifting in the marketing. You can machine wash it, but it’s still silk, and treating it like a cotton tee will shorten its life. Here’s the routine that’s kept mine looking new:
- Turn the pieces inside out and put them in a mesh lingerie bag.
- Cold water, delicate cycle, with similar fabrics only.
- Lay flat to dry. Don’t hang it — wet silk stretches out of shape on a hanger.
- Steam, don’t iron, if you want the wrinkles gone.
One honesty note: the very first wash made mine feel a touch stiffer than the buttery texture it arrived with. It relaxed back to about 90% of that original feel after two wears. So don’t panic if your first laundry day feels like a downgrade.
Is Lunya worth the price? (And the Quince question)
Let’s deal with money directly, because $188 for pajamas is a lot. The way I think about it: I wear this set four or five nights a week, and good sleep is not a category where I want to be cheap. Spread over a couple of years of near-daily use, the per-wear cost is lower than a fast-fashion set I’d replace twice a year.
The honest counterpoint is Quince, which sells washable mulberry silk sets for a fraction of the price and gets recommended constantly as the budget alternative. Having handled both, the Quince silk is closer to that classic slippery, glossy silk feel, while Lunya’s is softer and more distinctive, with better finishing details like the waistband grips. If you just want to test whether you like sleeping in silk at all, start with Quince. If you already know you love silk and you’re a hot sleeper who’ll wear it constantly, Lunya is the upgrade that justifies itself.
| Lunya Washable Silk | Quince Washable Silk | |
|---|---|---|
| Set price | $178–$238 | ~$80–$120 |
| Fabric feel | Matte, suede-soft | Classic glossy silk |
| Design details | Waistband grips, tailored fit | Simpler, fewer extras |
| Best for | Daily-wear hot sleepers | First-time silk testers |
Who should buy Lunya
Buy it if you sleep hot, you wear pajamas most nights, and you want real silk you can actually launder at home. It’s also a strong gift for someone who’d never splurge on themselves.
Who should skip it
Skip it if you’re size-mismatched top to bottom and the fixed-set sizing would frustrate you, if you won’t commit to gentle washing, or if you’re just curious about silk and not ready for a three-figure experiment. Try Quince first in that case.
Lunya review FAQ
Is Lunya washable silk actually machine washable?
Yes. Lunya’s Washable Silk is 100% mulberry silk engineered to survive a cold, delicate machine wash. Turn pieces inside out, use a mesh lingerie bag, wash on cold delicate, and lay flat to dry. It’s still silk, so avoid hot water, the dryer, and hanging it wet.
How much does a Lunya silk set cost?
Lunya’s washable silk sets run roughly $178 to $238 depending on style. The short tank-and-shorts set is around $178–$188, and the long pant set is about $238. Lunya offers free U.S. ground shipping on orders over $150.
Does Lunya silk run true to size?
The shorts fit true to size, but the tank runs oversized and relaxed. Because the set is sold as one size, you can’t mix a smaller bottom with a larger top. Size for your hips and bottom half, and expect a roomy top.
Is Lunya good for hot sleepers?
Yes — this is its biggest strength. Mulberry silk is naturally thermoregulating, so it helps wick heat and keep your skin temperature stable. Reviewers and hot sleepers consistently report fewer overheating wake-ups compared with cotton or synthetic pajamas.
What’s a cheaper alternative to Lunya?
Quince is the most-cited budget alternative, selling washable mulberry silk sets for roughly half to a third of Lunya’s price. Quince feels like classic glossy silk, while Lunya is softer with more refined details. Quince is the smart way to test if you like silk before splurging.
My verdict
Two years in, I’ve stopped buying cheap pajama sets I replace every season. The Lunya washable silk set is expensive and the fixed sizing is genuinely annoying, but it solved the one problem I actually had — waking up hot — and it’s held up wash after wash. If you sleep warm and you’ll wear it constantly, it’s one of the few luxury purchases I’d make again without hesitating. If you’re silk-curious on a budget, start cheaper and graduate to this later.
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Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. If you purchase through them, we may earn a commission at no additional cost to you. Opinions, including the criticisms above, are our own and based on hands-on use.