The History of Chenille

In 1918, Evans took Eugenia Jarvis as a partner and the two solicited business from a number of retail outlets such as Philadelphia's famous Wanamaker's department store. These chenille bedspreads were big sellers, and in the beginning, their manufacture supplied much needed income for many of the residents of north Georgia around Dalton. Before long, however, factory production replaced the handwork.

Besides bedspreads, chenille items such as towels, robes, bathroom carpet, curtains and even toilet tank covers became widely available. Some of the popular images seen on these pieces included florals, geometrics, cowboy and western themes and birds. The peacock seen on your spread is a very popular subject because the outspread tail feathers provide an opportunity for an eye-catching display of tufted colors.

Chenille items fell out of favor with the buying public in the late 1960s, but today they are being rediscovered by collectors who are attracted by their graphic quality and nostalgic connotations. They are being used on beds once again, and those examples that have not weathered the years well and are too tattered to be used or displayed whole often are being turned into pillow covers (but this is an absolute last resort).

Chenille bedspreads have a charming classic look that is always in style. Throw-style diamond chenille bedspreads feature row upon row of rich, tufted diamonds woven to all-cotton sheeting. Fringe completes the look. Chenille may refer to either a type of cored yarn or fabric made from it.

Chenille, the French word for caterpillar, is typically used to describe a type of yarn manufactured by piles (short lengths) wrapped around a tightly wound core. The yarn is commonly manufactured from cotton fabrics, but chenille can also describe acrylic, rayon and olefin fibers. The arrangement of the piles, extending at right angles from the yarn’s core gives the iridescent texture which the fabric is most commonly known for.

Though production of chenille-type yarns extends back to the 18th century, standards of industrial production were not introduced until the 1990s, marked by the formation of groups such as the Chenille International Manufacturers Association (CIMA - an organization formed with the mission to improve industrial manufacturing processes through education). In the 1930s chenille became widely desired as type of tufted fabric in carpets and bedspreads, though wasn’t popularized until commercialized production in the 1970s.