Spotted Silks

I have been reading the book, Selling Silks, 1764. See cover below. Miki was at the Applique Academy in Williamsburg recently and brought it home. Printed by the V & A.

There were some 'basics' in 18th Century silk weaving and some over the top productions.

This (1764) is before the Jacquard machine..1804-05. That mechanism fit on top of a loom and made the weaving of brocades, damasks and Matelassé easier. Previously these specialty weaves required loom attendants (up to 7) plus the weaver.

The basics were stripes, plaids and spotted. Production of lines and circles usually required just one weaver. The spots could be different colors, different fibers ( silver or gold threads) or different texture..chenille (Fr. caterpillar).

Circles and dots have been a standard motifs in printed/woven fabrics for many years, across many cultures. Resist, discharge, direct printing and weaving.

In the mid 1840s a St Louis wholesaler was preparing sample cards for his sales force. These would have probably been 8 1/2" X 11" card stock with an elaborate printed border and a Rococo style cartouche at the top for the name of the line.

Trying to be trendy, he named his new line of circles printed on fabric...Polka Dots. The Polka was the current dance craze. We are still following his trend today.