Hello Everyone,
As far as printed fabrics go, toile is by far my ultimate favorite. Any and every chance I can use its old world charm I do. Toile is a French word that is not pronounced like it’s written, and has been shortened from its original name. Originally called Toile de Jouy (pronounced twahl de zhwee) after the town, Jouy-en-Josas, a village near Verailles. French Toile has quite a history and it doesn’t even start in France, for which it’s famous. It originated from Ireland in 1752 by Frances Nixon, who invented a way of machining the print onto fabrics with copperplate printing. When Nixon introduced them to England, they were an instant success and manufacturing began. Due to a ban at the time on France for exporting cotton manufacturing, they were falling behind on their industry. When the ban was lifted, a French printer hired a designer and opened the Jouy factory. Due to their high standards and artistry, the Jouy plant became synonymous with the toile design. It became the fabric of the French court, especially with Marie Antoinette.
Benjamin Franklin, a printer himself, was the first American to buy toile and bring back to the colonies. It was an instant success here. Despite a ban on skilled textile workers leaving England, Franklin was able to help a man by the name of John Hewson leave his country to produce such fabrics in America. It took America nearly 50 years before they were able to compete with the British textile factories. Because of industrialization and social change the toile design lost its popularity fairly quickly but was revived in the Colonial Revival movement that officially began 1876 in Philadelphia. Since then it has always been a popular fabric here in America, even having peak popularity known as “toile fever.”
This enduring and endearing fabric can be an inexpensive way of bringing stories of the past and charm into anyone’s home. It can be found by just about any retailer and online. Most of my toile is a Waverly print that I have bought in various places because of its popularity and convenience. Here is a room I have decorated with yellow and blue toile wallpaper and curtains.
All information was retrieved from the following book: Toile: The storied Fabrics of Europe and America by Michele Palmer.
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