Edwardian/Teens Coat...WHAT is this fabric?

CLVintage

CLVintage

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I found this coat (jacket? robe?) recently and have been researching since I got it home, but I'm just not versed at all in this era...the cut and low off-center single button front reads 'teens to me...but I am really unsure. The fabric is puzzling me too...it reminds me of a jute or burlap in weave but isn't stiff or coarse. Any thoughts? It's structurally pretty much perfect, but is filthy and I'm dying to give it a good soak, if it's possible.

I would really love any help or ideas you might have!

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extreme closeup http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8469/8368457277_45da6522dd_h.jpg

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That is quite lovely. It looks like a loose weave linen to me. Style looks much like circa 1910-1911, but this one is a bit hard to be exact on for me. It could be for morning wear, as a sort of lightweight jacket/coat to go over an indoor summer morning dress (worn for breakfast or tea on the porch, etc) or to go over a "lingerie dress", or worn outdoors over a cotton lawn dress for a summer day. I suppose it could be a robe, not sure. Or for the seashore.

I cannot give advice on washing, as I do not know what fabric that is along the inner seams (silk?). But most linens can be soaked, washed and treated with great success. I like Oxyclean for my antique cottons and linens, but you have to be sure to rinse, rinse, and rinse again...and then rinse again to remove all the agent from the water.

Added: I just looked at your close ups and the fabric does look like linen, but the softness could mean it is a raw silk. It sort of looks like a raw silk yarn to me too. If you can snip a thread from an inner seam and do a burn test that might reveal the fiber content. Maybe a blend of silk/hemp or jute?
 
Barbara, I agree - I think it's a raw silk. A burn test, as you say, will easily identify.

I wonder if it's an Edwardian ('teens) duster coat for driving, and perhaps the lace trim was added later? I've seen a few dusters in silk and raw silk and the simple lines and the way it would cover your body are similar too.

If it is silk, you could probably carefully try it in an Oxy cleaner. The container says not to use it on silk but I've had successes with silks like this one. Just don't leave it too long, and rinse thoroughly, as Barbara says.
 
Barbara, thank you....great insights! I forgot to mention that on the burn test it reduced to a super fine ash and a spot of oil residue. And I was just googling that oil left behind and, as you suggested, linen was given as an option...burns like cotton, but contains more oil. That never occured to me! I didn't even see results listed for jute or hemp. I'll look those up! The seam binding is silk, yes. I haven't felt anything with a raw silk yarn before and would imagine it to be softer than this is....I think you're right with the jute/hemp/linen.
 
Nicole, we were posting at the same time... It looks like silk would leave a hard bead behind (I'm totally new at burn testing, so correct me if this isn't always the case) and this didn't leave anything behind but that oil. I'm glad you mentioned silk and Oxy...that was my next question!
 
I've never laid the burning fabric down before, just let it burn up in my tweezers...but it fell into the bowl I was using. I was shocked to see a residue like that too because I've never seen that mentioned before. But who knows what kind of muck is built up in 100 year old fibers, so maybe that contributed to the result?
 
Hi,

I have never had any oil residue from silk, cotton or linen, so that is odd to me. Perhaps it was a reaction from the bowl material itself, creating a moisture from the cool bowl and the hot fibers. Try another burn test, and this time after it burns immediately smell the smoke....if it smells like burning hair (yucky smell but good result) your coat is silk or a silk blend. Silk does not always leave a brittle thin bead, it depends on the silk fiber and how it was processed and other factors. Often it burns away clean and leaves only a thin fine ash of gray or black. So the smell is my key clue. Linen and cotton smell like burning paper.

Nicole, I thought too about a duster for automobile use, as you said they were sometimes made of silk but this one seems too light and loosely woven and open looking. Of course, it could be used for that purpose I suppose so why not!
 
Try another burn test, and this time after it burns immediately smell the smoke....if it smells like burning hair (yucky smell but good result) your coat is silk or a silk blend. Silk does not always leave a brittle thin bead, it depends on the silk fiber and how it was processed and other factors. Often it burns away clean and leaves only a thin fine ash of gray or black. So the smell is my key clue. Linen and cotton smell like burning paper.
Click to expand...

I totally agree with Barbara on repeating your burn test! Your coat is lovely! From "here" it looks like linen to me, as I'd expect raw silk to have more pronounced, random slubbing throughout, and I don't see that in the photos.
 
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