- Chintz
Used as plural of Chint, was originally woodblock painted or stained calico (cotton), with a glazed finish, produced in India from 1600 to 1800 used mainly as bed hangings and covers, draperies and quilts. They were representing mostly flowers but also other patterns in different colours, mainly represented on a white plain background. Around 1600, Portuguese and Dutch traders were bringing examples of Indian chintz into Europe on a small scale. By 1680 more than a million pieces of chintz were being imported into England per year, and a similar quantity was going to France and the Dutch Republic. These early imports were mostly used for curtains, furnishing fabrics, and bed hangings and cover. Later they have been employed on pottery (chintzware pottery) and as wallpaper too.
2. Paisley
The paisley pattern is an ornamental design in a form of a teardrop shape with a curved upper end. Originally from Persia, it became popular in the West around the 18-19th century. In Persian, it takes its name from the shape of the fig or almond. Its English name derives from the town of Paisley in Scotland where the textiles were produced.
3. Art Nouveau
The style of Art Nouveau was inspired by natural form, mostly curves as the feminin body shape, plants and flowers. It emerged in different countries around Europe at the same time and became internationally known. It reached its maximum popularity around 1900.
4. Toile de jouy
Toile de jouy were originally produced in Ireland in the mid 1700, quickly became popular in Britain and France. The term ‘toile’ can be referred to both the fabric and decoration. As a pattern it consists in a repetition of one or more complex scenes of a theme, generally pastoral such as a couple having a picnic by the lake, or arrangement of flowers. It is generally a single coloured pattern on an off-white (a white colour with a grey or yellowish tinge) background.
5. Neo-classical
Neoclassicism, born in Rome in mid 1700 and meaning ‘of the highest rank’, is the name of the Western movement in the decorative arts inspired by the classical art and culture. It is based on the principles of simplicity and symmetry, seen as virtues of the arts of Rome and Greece and in opposition to the then-dominant Baroque and Rococo styles that emphasises grace, ornamentation and asymmetry.
6. Damask
Is a reversible figured fabric with a pattern formed by weaving. Derive its name from the city of Damascus where it became very popular in the early middle Ages. It lost its prestige by the 9th century, also due to its high price, but then revived in the 13th century in Western Europe. By the 14th century damask were being woven on draw looms in Italy and most of them were in one colour with a glossy satin pattern, such as gold or other metallic threads, on a duller fabric.
7. Calico Prints
It’s a woven textile originated in Calicut (India) during the 11th century. It is normally a plain coloured fabric made from unbleached and unprocessed cotton. It appears like canvas but it is less tick and due to its unfinished features, it is cheap. By the 15th century it expanded in Egypt and by the 17th in Europe.
Early European calicoes (1680) would be cheap plain-weave white cotton fabric, cream or unbleached cotton, with a design block-printed in a red and black pattern. Poly-chromatic prints were made by using two sets of blocks and an additional blue dye. Indians preferred dark printed backgrounds while the European market preferred a pattern on a cream base. Initially the patterns represented large scale floral chintz but later, the European preference moved to smaller scale patterns.
8. Lingerie Floral
9. Little Nothings
Is a pattern that represents a gathering of one or more little undefined shapes
10. Organic Textures
A visual and/or tactile activity across a surface is a texture. When its structure it is based on irregular and random relationships over given areas, it is an organic texture. Organic also relates to the activity of a living organism. The size of the objects or lines forming the texture may vary.
This is a nice blog about some commonly used symbols.
Anda Avramescu 