All posts tagged: terminology

Terminology: What is botany wool?

Botany wool, often known simply as botany (though I find the ‘wool’ part helpful in differentiating it from the general ‘flowers and trees’ type of botany) is an early name for merino wool produced in the Antipodes. (OK, so I’m not 100% sure that suit is made of Botany wool. But it might very well be. And it’s spectacular. And there are only so many images of socks I can show you). In the 19th century it was spun into cloth and used in outer wear, and so the term ‘botany wool’ could mean the fabric, not the raw materials. In the 20th century it has mainly been used in knit sweaters and hosiery, though as late as 1922 you could still buy ‘Botany wool’ serge. According to most dictionaries, the term arose in the 1880s, when the Australian wool industry was established enough to export in reasonable quantities. However, there are advertisements describing cloth as ‘botany’ in New Zealand at the end of the 1870s, so it may be a bit older. It was …

Terminology: What is a cloche?

Published by The Dreamstress

First, have you seen that there is a ‘bonus’ post this week? Yep, the ‘Deco Echo’ blouse from my Art Deco wardrobe is being featured over on the Sew Weekly. I’ll be posting a tutorial on how to make it on Sat or Sun. Alright, turning our attention to the (suitable Art Deco) term of the week. What is a cloche? A cloche is a tight fitting hat which comes low over the forehead and at the nape of the neck. It can have a brim or be brimless. The word comes from the French for bell. The first known use for a hat was in 1882. Cloche’s are famous as the hat of the 1920s. Their sleek styling matched the shorter, sleeker fashions, and the new bobbed hairstyles allowed a low, tight fitting hat. 1880s origin or not, the cloche hats didn’t pick up steam until the 20th century. A 1908 fashion article credits the invention of the cloche or ‘mushroom’ hat to Mademoiselle Cecile Sorrell “The Queen of French Fashion”. Her innovation must …

Terminology: What is calamanco?

Published by The Dreamstress

Calamanco (also spelled callimanco, calimanco, and kalamink) is a thin fabric of worsted wool yarn which could come in a number of weaves: plain, satin, damasked, and was even brocaded in floral, striped and checked designs. The surface was glazed or calendered (pressed through hot rollers). References to calamanco go back to the late 16th century, but calamanco’s heyday was from the end of the 17th century to the end of the 18th century. It was a popular fabric for women’s gowns and petticoats and men’s waistcoats, though it was gradually replaced by cotton and linen calico as a dress fabric. Daniel Defoe mentions a petticoat of black calamanco in 1720, and they remained popular among the rural populace until the early 19th century. He also describes the wardrobe of the ‘poorest countryman’ in England and notes his ‘waistcoat of calimanco from Norwich.’ At least in the beginning of the century, calamanco wasn’t confined to the common man’s waistcoat. The Tatler in 1709 describes the wardrobe of the ‘Dapper’. The habit of a Dapper when …