Where does Dotted Swiss come from?

Dotted Swiss comes from Switzerland, first documented in the 1700s.

Plate No. 131fabric

Small raised dots on a sheer cotton ground.

First documented: 1700s
Origin: Switzerland, Switzerland
Fiber: cotton
Weave: sheer cotton with small raised or flocked dots
Family: dots

Plate No. 131 · fabric

Dotted Swiss

Dotted Swiss is a sheer, crisp cotton scattered with small raised dots, traditionally woven in as tiny clipped tufts (swivel dots) or, later, flocked or printed on. The Swiss perfected the fine cotton weaving that gave it its name in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, and the airy dotted cloth became a staple of summer dresses, blouses, christening gowns, and curtains. The dots are its whole character: a plain, almost gauzy ground made charming by a regular field of raised points.

Illustration: a fine cotton weaving workshop in an Alpine Swiss town in the 1800s, a hand loom by a tall window with a length of sheer dotted cotton on the beam, snow peaks through the glass, a weaver seen from behind — A fine cotton weaving workshop in an Alpine Swiss town in the 1800s, a hand loom by a tall window with a length of sheer dotted cotton on the beam, snow peaks through the glass, a weaver seen from behind.

Named for

Named for Switzerland, where the technique of weaving small raised dots into fine cotton was perfected; also called Swiss dot.

Also known as

Swiss dot

Common questions

What is Dotted Swiss made of?: Dotted Swiss is a sheer, crisp cotton scattered with small raised dots, traditionally woven in as tiny clipped tufts (swivel dots) or, later, flocked or printed on.
Where does Dotted Swiss come from?: Dotted Swiss comes from Switzerland, first documented in the 1700s.
What is Dotted Swiss named after?: Named for Switzerland, where the technique of weaving small raised dots into fine cotton was perfected; also called Swiss dot.