The Interesting History of the Oilcloth Tablecloth

A vinyl or PVC tablecloth is a common item in households today, but the convoluted route that oilcloth has taken through history has led it from roofs to floors and from clothing to tents, before it finally found its resting place on the modern dinner table.

The story starts thousands of years ago when textiles were first produced. Natural cotton fabrics were common and the thickest were chosen to be coated with oil to make them waterproof, hence the name oilcloth. The process involved stretching the fabric over a wooden board and covering it with multiple coats of linseed oil, thick oil with an unpleasant smell but one which made it harder for water to pass through the fabric. It also had the effect of making the fabric somewhat sturdier and more resistant to damage.

This oilcloth had many uses, such as covering thatched or wooden roofs to minimise leaks when it rained. People also used oilcloth to make tents as the thick, sturdy fabric did not flap about in the wind so much and the linseed oil coating kept them relatively dry in harsh weather. Old fashioned oilcloth was not one hundred percent waterproof by any means, but it was the best solution available to people at the time.

Sailors also saw the benefits of this semi waterproof fabric and it became typical to see seamen wearing a bright yellow hat and jacket, both known as souwesters, made from a primitive form of waterproof oil cloth. The most common use of oilcloth at this time however was as a floor covering, similar to a modern rug or linoleum flooring. Wooden floors quickly wore down and began to look old so oilcloths were laid on top to improve appearances and to protect the wooden floor below.

Oilcloth was relatively cheap to buy during the 18th century and soon all but the poorest of households had oilcloth floors. Carpet and textile rugs were still the domain of the very wealthy only. It was around this time that artisans began to experiment with painting the oilcloth before or between the coats of linseed oil. Colourful designs were hand painted on using rulers and stencils to make repeated designs as uniform as possible, and decorated oilcloths began to be just as much a work of art as they were a practical home decor item.

Soon after, the development of the textile industry led to the popularisation of yarn rugs that were now much cheaper to buy due to new manufacturing techniques and mass production. Oilcloth sellers, desperate not to lose their livelihoods, came up with a new way of using their fabric to keep it an integral part of the household. The oilcloth tablecloth was born, a waterproof and hard wearing cover for the dining table that housewives soon realised made cleaning the table after meals much quicker and easier.
In Europe, the typical tablecloth was white and soon became an essential item when laying the table for meals. Perigua tablecloths, still used today, were a special style that was white with blue embroidery. They were typical of church linen, even as far back as the medieval times before the general popularisation of the oilcloth tablecloth.

Traditional oilcloth however did have some major downfalls. Not only was it not entirely waterproof and much harder to clean than the simple one wipe tablecloths of today, in hot weather the oil tended to dry out and crack, meaning that the tablecloths needed to be replaced regularly.

In the late 1950s textile experts developed a method of coating heavy cotton fabric with a very thin layer of printed vinyl. This new pvc tablecloth caught on quickly with housewives around the world and colourful prints once again began to be popular, rather than a simple white tablecloth. Little has changed in the past few decades except that the process has been refined and perfected, so that tablecloths today are easier to clean that ever, plus the development of laser printing has led to an explosion in the number and variety of designs available.

For the modern tablecloth vinyl is the material of choice. It is still commonly known as an oilcloth tablecloth even though it is no longer coated in oil as was historically done. A pvc tablecloth nowadays is very cheap to buy and with the huge range of prints to choose from it is the perfect choice for an easy to clean tablecloth that matches the rest of your decor perfectly.