Is that your grandmother’s pillow on the couch? Or is it a trendy new accessory featuring vintage fabric from the 1940s wartime period?
The thick textured fabric – a.k.a. bark cloth -- that seemed mod amidst the décor of homes in the 1940s – 1960s is now showing up in more than just garage sales. In fact, bark cloth fabric is making waves today with its tropical Hawaiian floral, Oriental prints and colorful patterns.
Although the origin of using the inner bark of trees, such as fig, breadfruit and paper mulberry, to make sturdy “tapa” cloth dates back to the 6th century B.C., it was around World War II that the fabric became more world renown. Many servicemen stationed in Hawaii saw first hand the brightly colored bark cloth curtains, home furnishings and even shirts and in turn brought them back to the mainland and abroad. In the late 1940s and through the 1960s, bark cloth became a staple fabric in the home interior textiles market. The most collectible of these are the atomic “Eames era” prints that made a name for themselves in the 1950s and 1960s.
The thick textured fabric – a.k.a. bark cloth -- that seemed mod amidst the décor of homes in the 1940s – 1960s is now showing up in more than just garage sales. In fact, bark cloth fabric is making waves today with its tropical Hawaiian floral, Oriental prints and colorful patterns.
Although the origin of using the inner bark of trees, such as fig, breadfruit and paper mulberry, to make sturdy “tapa” cloth dates back to the 6th century B.C., it was around World War II that the fabric became more world renown. Many servicemen stationed in Hawaii saw first hand the brightly colored bark cloth curtains, home furnishings and even shirts and in turn brought them back to the mainland and abroad. In the late 1940s and through the 1960s, bark cloth became a staple fabric in the home interior textiles market. The most collectible of these are the atomic “Eames era” prints that made a name for themselves in the 1950s and 1960s.
Here are just some of the samplings that we have had here at Island Girl.
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