TOILE

Good morning, friends,
Hope you're having a wonderful day!

Have you seen the new cover of Country Living magazine?

Can you believe it? Timeless, traditional, red toile is now for the shabby, country home.

I love it! I have always loved toile and have some touch of it in almost every room of our home, so I thought I would share some of my toile with you.

But, first, how about a little history of this gorgeous French fabric?

Toile de Jouy
A Fabric with Roots in the Eighteenth Century

by Patricia Cummings

What is Toile de Jouy?

Toile (pronounced twahl) means "cloth" in French. “Toile de Jouy,” or “toiles de Jouy,” are terms that refer to fabric that was first manufactured at a factory in Jouy-en-Josas, a village located southwest of Paris, near Versailles. Founded in 1760 by German-born Christophe-Philippe Oberkampf, (1738-1815), a textile entrepreneur, the factory site was chosen primarily because of its proximity to the clear running water of the Bièvre River. Oberkampf knew that water is a crucial element in the dyeing process. Only the highest quality goods were used in the production of the factory's printed fabrics made of cotton, one reason for the enterprise’s success.
Taken from:  http://www.quiltersmuse.com/toile.html

Toile is fabric made with an elegant printing technique that tells stories in engraving-like detail. The initial toile was a monotone, one-color print,  on a white or cream-colored background. As my youngest daughter describes it "the fabric that tells a story". I love that.

For a more complete history of Toile, you can visit Design Sponge here, who did a detailed post about Toile last March.

Yeah, now we know how to pronounce it (twahl).  "Toile de Jouy" ~ sounds so pretty. Don't you just love French? 

Sharing some toile around our home . . .  

Red toile guest room

pillow shams made from kitchen towels {I like the plaid and toile together, 
and the towels were just the right size for a standard pillow and easy to make}

pillows made from Toile napkins {cloth napkins are really just the right size for pillows}
 

In the study . . . 

This black background toile fabric works great in Kevin's office, 

and gives it a more masculine feel.

It's on the windows and a bench.

pillows made from decorator fabric sample squares from Jo-Ann's purchased for $1 
{again, just the right size}, and the back side is different  (black plaid on this one)
so you can totally change the look whenever you want

In the kitchen . . . 

on the walls

 dishes  . . .

Waverly blue tablecloth

In the laundry room . . .

In the foyer . . .

Toile wallpaper in the downstairs guest bathroom

 And, of course, more pillows . . . 

in the family room

in the living room 

{blue floral ~ it doesn't tell a story but has the toile look}

For me, toile will never go out of style.

Hope you made it through the long post.

Thanks for visiting. I love and read all of your comments.

And, if you're a follower, thank you. I hope to get to know you better.

Have a great weekend!

~ Julie


I'm linking with:

http://www.freckledlaundry.com/2011/02/air-your-laundry-friday-link-party-15.html
http://frenchcountrycottage.blogspot.com/2011/02/bedroom-inspirations-welcome-to.html  
http://commonground-debrasvintagedesigns.blogspot.com/2011/02/vintage-inspiration-friday-25-where-to.html 
http://thebrambleberrycottage.blogspot.com/2011/02/time-travel-thursday-33-laughter-is.html 
http://charmbraceletdiva.blogspot.com/2011/03/come-on-over-to-my-house-do-you-toile.html