Chenille = Caterpillar

Did you know that the word "chenille," which is the name of a type of fabric characterized by a thick, tufted cording, often woven into patterns above a plain ground, comes from a French word for "caterpillar?" It is another one of those French words that comes in to English and we learn it as kids without knowing what it originally meant.

Chenille yarn is created by twisting shorter threads of yarn called pile threads between two core threads of yarn. The shorter pile threads then poke out at right angles. It is these pile threads poking out that gives the yarn a fuzzy, tufted appearance that feels like velvet. The word chenille originally referred to the cording alone, which resembled a fuzzy caterpillar. Starting inthe 18th century, it was used for embroidery, fringe, and tassels on both furniture and clothing, and eventually evolved into a fabric. Sometimes the fabric has tufted sections that are woven into patterns, and sometimes the chenille tufts have no plain ground, and seem like a very soft, velvet like fabric that is softer, which generally a longer pile.

Chenille fabric comes in and out of fashion. Growing up in the early 1950s, there had been a big vogue for chenille in the late 1930s and 40s for bedspreads, pillows and bathrobes, so for me, in one of my Proustian moments, I can remember being put to sleep (to nap) on one of these bedspreads at my aunt's house or grandmother's, and I remember lying there before falling asleep, picking at the small tufts of corded material, and tracing the patterns with my fingers. Later, in my teens, when I needed a new bedspread, I asked for a chenille one, but made in a heavier cotton with a pattern that was stiffer and less comfortable, I could fall asleep on the top of my bed on a lazy weekend afternoon and wake up with a pattern of red indentations on my face and arms where I lay against the fabric.

In the last couple of decades the fabric has evolved tremendously. The fabric has developed into a much softer version. What had been usually used for bedspreads and bathrobes, became adopted for jackets and vests. These outfits at first looked like they had been artfully made from an old bedspread or curtain, but in fact the fabric patterns had been woven for the garment. Still later, in the 1970s, when it really was developed to be made into garments, chenille fabic that was made completed from the tufted yarn added a new fabric with a unique feel and drape. The last decade saw the use of chenille in a variety of boas neckwarmers. Usually woven in cotton these days, it can also be made from silk, rayon, or even wool.

There is currently an organization dedicated to the improvement and development of chenille manufacturing processes. This organization is known as the CIMA, or Chenille International Manufacturers Association. Visit them for more detailed information.