Nothing says French quite like a room furnished à la Madame de Pompadour in floor to ceiling toile. The word “toile” literally translates to “cloth” in French. What we know today as “toile” or “toile de Jouy” sprung out of 18th century textile design. These fabrics are the epitome of French provincial fashion today.

During the 1700s, French silk was a top trading commodity. in order to protect its industries from the sudden influx of indian cottons, France banned the importation and production of cotton. These laws were largely ineffective, and manufacturers continued to smuggle in foreign cottons and produce their own, printing on these cloths. This lighter, cheaper fabric was popular for apparel amongst the rural population and the highest qualities often furnished palatial rooms of the court.

France lifted the ban on cotton importation and production in 1756. Four years later, a Bavarian named Christophe-Philippe Oberkampf opened a textile factory in Jouy-en-Josas, France, where he began producing imitations of monochrome, naturalistic English designs on cotton and linen using an engraved copper plate. By 1770 he began operating an intaglio press, improving on the older models for fabric printing.

Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose!
(French) [plu sa sha(n)zh plu say la mem shoz]
The more things change, the more they stay the same.

By 1800 most manufacturers were operating roller printers instead of the more laborious plate printing method. Although printing became faster, the vertical repeat of the designs shrank due to the size of the rollers. Designs became very crowded, with little or no open spaces left on the ground fabric. By 1830, these busy, dizzying fabrics faded out of fashion. Though it never disappeared, toile fell by the wayside for much of the 19th century.

Around the turn of the century, American firms specializing in French design began to appear, such as Brunschwig & Fils, which established New York offices in 1926. During the 1920s Americans went mad for anything in the Colonial Revival style, including French toiles. When they couldn’t get the real thing, design firms began to create beautiful reproductions.

During the 1980s a fad for “document” designs caused another mania for toile that has resurfaced again in recent years. French firms had vast collections of historic documents and many retained their old works, giving modern design firms the opportunity to create truly historic fabrics. Often made at the same print houses as the originals, the finest toiles available today are a blend of past and present, an excellent reminder that good design is forever.

Katie Knowles is the archivist for Kravet Inc.

Product Id:
Left: Archive Document, BR.1998.101.009, c.1810 Mulhouse, France for Plaisirs d’Indochine
Right: Plaisirs d’Indochine - BR -79387-166