Where does Matelassé come from?

Matelassé comes from France, first documented in the 1800s.

Plate No. 146fabric

Woven puffs in a diamond quilt, raised straight off the loom.

First documented: 1800s
Origin: France, France
Fiber: cotton, silk, wool
Weave: compound double cloth woven to look quilted
Family: pile

Plate No. 146 · fabric

Matelassé

Matelassé is a double or compound cloth woven so that its surface puffs into a raised, quilted relief without any actual wadding or hand stitching. Two sets of warp and weft are bound together at intervals, and the tension pulls the cloth into padded diamonds, squares, or scrolls, mimicking the look of a hand-quilted coverlet straight off the loom. It imitates the trapunto and corded quilting of Provence, and is used for bedding, jackets, and structured eveningwear where a soft dimensional surface is wanted.

Illustration: a Provencal sewing atelier in the south of France, bolts of soft white quilted cloth folded on a long table by tall shuttered windows, a seamstress at a distance smoothing a length, lavender light — A Provencal sewing atelier in the south of France, bolts of soft white quilted cloth folded on a long table by tall shuttered windows, a seamstress at a distance smoothing a length, lavender light.

Named for

From the French matelassé, padded or cushioned, from matelas, a mattress.

Common questions

What is Matelassé made of?: Matelassé is a double or compound cloth woven so that its surface puffs into a raised, quilted relief without any actual wadding or hand stitching. It is traditionally made of cotton, silk, or wool.
Where does Matelassé come from?: Matelassé comes from France, first documented in the 1800s.
What is Matelassé named after?: From the French matelassé, padded or cushioned, from matelas, a mattress.