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Toile (French for "canvas") is a textile fabric comparable to finebatiste with a cloth weave. Natural silk or chemical fiber filaments are usually used as materials.[1] The wordtoile can refer to the fabric itself or to a test garment sewn fromcalico. The French termtoile entered theEnglish language around the 12th century, was used in theMiddle Ages[2] and meanwhile has disappeared.[3]
Middle English toile, fromFrenchtoile ("cloth"), fromOld Frenchteile, fromLatintela ("web"), fromProto-Indo-European*(s)teg ("to cover") (seeList of Proto-Indo-European roots inWiktionary). In Australian and British terminology, atoile is a version of a garment made by a fashion designer ordressmaker to test apattern. They are usually made ofcalico. Multiple toiles may be made in the process of perfecting a design. In the United Statestoiles are sometimes referred to asmuslins, because during theMiddle Ages they were made from the cheap, unbleachedmuslin-fabric available in different weights.
The French "Toile de Jouy" simply means "cloth fromJouy" in English and describes a type of fabric printing.[4][5]"Toile de Jouy", sometimes abbreviated to simply "toile", is a type of decorating pattern consisting of a white or off-white background on which is a repeated pattern depicting a fairly complex scene, generally of a pastoral theme such as a couple having a picnic by a lake or an arrangement of flowers.[6] The pattern portion consists of a single color, most often black, dark red, or blue. Greens, browns, and magenta toile patterns are less common, but not unheard of. Toile is most associated with fabrics (curtains and upholstery in particular, especially chintz), though toile wallpaper is also popular. Toile can also be used on teapots, beddings, clothing, etc. In upper-class (primarily American, but also northern European) society, toile is often seen on dresses or aprons used at such events as country-themed garden parties or tea parties.
Toiles were originally produced in Ireland in the mid-18th Century and quickly became popular in Britain and France.[7] The term "Toile de Jouy" originated inFrance in the late 18th century. In theFrench language, the phrase literally means "cloth fromJouy-en-Josas", a town in the south-west suburbs ofParis.
Although it has been continuously produced since then, it experienced a marked upsurge in popularity around the year 2000. Previously only a decorating design, designers have been recently experimenting with toile-patterned apparel as well, although toile-patterned shirts were widely worn in the 1970s.
Toiles were very popular during theColonial Era in the United States and are highly associated with preservationist towns and historical areas such asColonial Williamsburg.[8] When Williamsburg saw a resurgence in popularity in the 1930s, so did toiles, as they did again in the 1970s in celebration of theUnited States Bicentennial.
The dictionary definition oftoile at Wiktionary