Early 1950s Armstrong living room
For those of us who love mid-century interior design, barkcloth is a word that sets the heart aflutter. All those rich tropical leaf prints! But did you know that this fabric we call barkcloth is a fairly modern use of the word? And that the original barkcloth has a much longer history?
Barkcloth, non-woven
A textile made by soaking and pounding the fibrous inner bark of trees, most often the paper mulberry. The fabric is nonwoven and paper-like, although it can be made thick and tough, as well as fine and delicate. The cloth takes dyes well and is often decorated with geometric patterns. A type of barkcloth, Tapa (called Kapa in Hawaii) is traditionally made by Pacific Islanders who make it to this day. Other types of barkcloth are indigenous to tropical cultures throughout the world.
Uses: Clothing, decorative items
Wedding Tapa, 19th century, from the collection of Los Angeles County Museum of Art (Wikipedia)
Samoan barkcloth textile fragment, early 1800s - early 1900s from the RISD Museum
Two Samoan girls in traditional Tapa dresses, courtesy of Roger Neich by way of JPN 405 UKY on Wordpress
Now the barkcloth we often cite—
Barkcloth, woven
A fabric with a crepe-like texture, woven barkcloth is actually a granite or momie weave textile, as compared to non-woven traditional barkcloth. The term barkcloth as applied to this type of fabric appears to date from the 1920s, and it is most associated with interior decorating in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. The fiber is cotton and the weight substantial. The texture is characteristic of the fabric—as are the decorative, bold patterns and colors—which truly evoke Mid-century home decor.
Uses: Interior decorating, decorative items
Woven barkcloth
...and from a distance
More about that weave—
Granite weave
Short floats in a seemingly random pattern creating a pebbled surface. Granite weave is not one of the basic weaves but rather a crepe texture achieved through the weaving process. Granite weave may be made in any of the basic weaves.
Momie weave is synonymous.
I have seen almost any textured cotton fabric printed with tapa-style patterns, or tropical flora, called barkcloth. That isn't technically correct, but given that the granite weave barkcloth isn't the original non-woven barkcloth, I guess imposters are par for the course!
