Doily do or doily don’t?

It seems there are always two camps when it comes to these small crocheted placemats. Some don’t understand their outdated purpose and others revere them for the skill and hours required to make them.

How is it that such a small, seemingly superfluous item creates such division?

When they were first introduced in the 16th Century, a doily was basically a fancy napkin, with many sources crediting the name to an actual man – Doiley (or Doyley) a London cloth merchant.

In the Victorian era, openwork crocheted doilies (which we are more familiar with) became hugely popular. With the invention of mercerization, cotton yarn became affordable to most women and during the Irish Famine of 1846, nuns taught women to crochet so they could produce saleable items to feed their families.

Doilies became the sign of a well-dressed house

In their first wave of popularity, crocheted doilies were disrupting the exclusive and expensive lace industry. Women were able to make their own with easy access to materials and patterns. Doilies and embroidered table linens became part of a well-dressed home. 

As the pendulum of taste swayed the other way, doilies became outdated, with public taste yearning for more streamlined, sleek and modern lines. Yet they continued to be produced. Handwork is after all a form of meditation and creativity. A way of mindfully ‘switching off’ at the end of a day’s work.

Tablecloths and doilies tell a story of women who toil

You might say doilies and embroidery were a symbol of the domestication of women, but during the second-wave of the women’s liberation movement in the 1970s, handwork was also seen as a vehicle for activism. In1979 in Australia the Women’s Domestic Needlework Group presented an exhibition called The D’oyley Show: An Exhibition of Women’s Domestic Fancywork to highlight ‘women who toil’.

The exhibition included protest posters that spoke about the social and economic isolation of the many women earning a living through hand work. They worked without the protection of Guilds that only allowed men. Did you know, for example, that the ‘useful’ lifespan of  a Valencienne’s lace worker was just thirty years old? Due to the fragile nature of the yarn, they had to work in damp, ill-lit cellars which caused health issues like failing eyesight and pulmonary disease.

Another poster illustrates how ‘the artist imprisoned in the housewife’ shows herself in the decorative things she makes at the end of a day doing chores.

Where to source lovingly reclaimed vintage textiles

At The Nest, we receive countless donations containing outdated but beautiful vintage textiles. Much of it comes from deceased estates, donated almost reluctantly. The custodians are nervous that we won’t appreciate them, but also aware that unless they pass them on, their only alternative is to dump them.

This is where slow fashion is fast becoming a vehicle for vintage textiles to shape-shift from tableware to clothing in a respectful and meaningful way. With renewed purpose, these intricate, colourful and sometimes quirky designs once again become part of daily life.

So, next time you come across a doily, take a moment and imagine what it could tell you about the women who made it. How can you share her story so that it’s relevant today?