This pair of curtains are very large, and date from the late 19th century or the first years of the 20th century. They would have belonged to a wealthy household, from a house (more likely a mansion) with large rooms, very high ceilings, and huge windows. They were found starched and folded up neatly in a large old Charvet box, which will give you an idea of the sort of household they originate from.
They are made from a fine stiff cotton batiste, very similar to the fabric that was often used for confirmation gowns. The embroidery is known as cornely in French, sometimes written as cornelli in American English and was very popular from about 1860-1910. It is a sort of chainstitched embroidery, something like a fine crewel-work but in cotton and usually done in white on white. I’ve seen antique pieces of this work advertised as hand-embroidered - it is not, it was done with a special type of machine that resembles a small upright sewing machine. But it still took a lot of skill to manage to balance a delicate pattern across such a large space. Each curtain has scallops down both sides and along the bottom. Each curtain is also made from panels of fabric and one half of each curtain is reversed so that have the curtain is right side and half is the reverse. This may have been because they were meant to be folded in half to cover an interior opening or doorway in which both sides were visible, or perhaps they were made to fold around a bedframe or similar. In the middle of each curtain where the join between the two panels are is a deliberately made slit, possibly to thread a tieback through.
Along with the curtains are six ruffled tiebacks in three different embroidery patternings. Only one patterning matches these curtains. It could be that the other two pairs belonged to two other sets of curtains that have since gone on adventures elsewhere.
This pair of curtains are remarkable for their size but also for their condition. It’s rare to find these curtains without extensive damage, as they are made from such fine cotton fabric, almost like a stiffened gauze. These ones do have damage but it is mostly confined to the top borders where the pleats are and where the weight would have pulled most, with some at the sides. But for such huge curtains it is really very minimal and the vast expanse of both curtains, including the scalloped edges, is in exceptionally good condition. One curtain is almost perfect. The other has a scattering of little damages and small visible repairs but only three of these damages are of any consequence, and the largest is about 9cm across. These damages could do with a little bit of patching. I have photographed these. The tiebacks show also some damage, some loss and a little bit of tearing - these tiebacks would have been subject to weight and strain. The box they were found in dates from the early 50’s and i’m guessing they have spent much of their life in storage.
Because they were starched and stored for a long time they had oxidisation marks. I have painstakingly soaked and washed these entirely by hand as machine washing would damage them and air-dried them on a hot summer’s day. They have been ironed. They are ready to use and would look incredible on a pair of large windows.
They each measure approximately 235cm along the pinch-pleated top, 368cm along the bottom, and are 305cm long on one side and 252cm on the other. Because of these measurements, in which one side is about 50cm shorter than the other on both curtains, I think it is most likely that they were made to go around a bedframe of some sort, or that they were meant to be folded over each other to create a double edge of ruffles. The six tiebacks are approximately 92cm long.
Please click on the photos to open them up full-sized.
To purchase, please contact me.
This pair of curtains are very large, and date from the late 19th century or the first years of the 20th century. They would have belonged to a wealthy household, from a house (more likely a mansion) with large rooms, very high ceilings, and huge windows. They were found starched and folded up neatly in a large old Charvet box, which will give you an idea of the sort of household they originate from.
They are made from a fine stiff cotton batiste, very similar to the fabric that was often used for confirmation gowns. The embroidery is known as cornely in French, sometimes written as cornelli in American English and was very popular from about 1860-1910. It is a sort of chainstitched embroidery, something like a fine crewel-work but in cotton and usually done in white on white. I’ve seen antique pieces of this work advertised as hand-embroidered - it is not, it was done with a special type of machine that resembles a small upright sewing machine. But it still took a lot of skill to manage to balance a delicate pattern across such a large space. Each curtain has scallops down both sides and along the bottom. Each curtain is also made from panels of fabric and one half of each curtain is reversed so that have the curtain is right side and half is the reverse. This may have been because they were meant to be folded in half to cover an interior opening or doorway in which both sides were visible, or perhaps they were made to fold around a bedframe or similar. In the middle of each curtain where the join between the two panels are is a deliberately made slit, possibly to thread a tieback through.
Along with the curtains are six ruffled tiebacks in three different embroidery patternings. Only one patterning matches these curtains. It could be that the other two pairs belonged to two other sets of curtains that have since gone on adventures elsewhere.
This pair of curtains are remarkable for their size but also for their condition. It’s rare to find these curtains without extensive damage, as they are made from such fine cotton fabric, almost like a stiffened gauze. These ones do have damage but it is mostly confined to the top borders where the pleats are and where the weight would have pulled most, with some at the sides. But for such huge curtains it is really very minimal and the vast expanse of both curtains, including the scalloped edges, is in exceptionally good condition. One curtain is almost perfect. The other has a scattering of little damages and small visible repairs but only three of these damages are of any consequence, and the largest is about 9cm across. These damages could do with a little bit of patching. I have photographed these. The tiebacks show also some damage, some loss and a little bit of tearing - these tiebacks would have been subject to weight and strain. The box they were found in dates from the early 50’s and i’m guessing they have spent much of their life in storage.
Because they were starched and stored for a long time they had oxidisation marks. I have painstakingly soaked and washed these entirely by hand as machine washing would damage them and air-dried them on a hot summer’s day. They have been ironed. They are ready to use and would look incredible on a pair of large windows.
They each measure approximately 235cm along the pinch-pleated top, 368cm along the bottom, and are 305cm long on one side and 252cm on the other. Because of these measurements, in which one side is about 50cm shorter than the other on both curtains, I think it is most likely that they were made to go around a bedframe of some sort, or that they were meant to be folded over each other to create a double edge of ruffles. The six tiebacks are approximately 92cm long.
Please click on the photos to open them up full-sized.
To purchase, please contact me.
Image 1 of 18
Image 2 of 18
Image 3 of 18
Image 4 of 18
Image 5 of 18
Image 6 of 18
Image 7 of 18
Image 8 of 18
Image 9 of 18
Image 10 of 18
Image 11 of 18
Image 12 of 18
Image 13 of 18
Image 14 of 18
Image 15 of 18
Image 16 of 18
Image 17 of 18
Image 18 of 18