Madras (cloth)
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Madras is a lightweight
Definition
Authentic Madras comes from Chennai (Madras); both sides of the cloth must bear the same pattern; it must be handwoven (evidenced by the small flaws in the fabric).[2] Most popular in the 1960s.
Cotton madras is woven from a fragile, short-staple cotton fiber that cannot be combed, only carded.[2] This results in bumps known as slubs which are thick spots in the yarn that give madras its unique texture. The cotton is hand-dyed after being spun into yarn, woven, and finished in some 200 small villages in the Madras area.[2]
History
By the 16th century, madras cotton had morphed into something more elegant, printed with floral patterns or religious designs.[2]
Dutch traders arrived in India in the early 17th century to trade in the local calico cloth, followed by the British. The English East India Company sought quality textiles, finding the small fishing village of Madrasapattinam (Madras), and the company established a trading post there in the mid-17th century.[2]
The first madras material
Undyed madras cloth became popular in Europe because it was lightweight and breathable.[2] Cotton plaid madras reached America in 1718 as a donation to the Collegiate School of Connecticut (now known as Yale University).[2] Sears offered the first madras shirt for sale to the American consumer in its 1897 catalog.[2]
In the
The name "madras" was attributed to
Authentic Indian Madras is completely handwoven from yarns dyed with native vegetable colorings. Home-spun by native weavers, no two plaids are exactly the same. When washed with mild soap in warm water, they are guaranteed to bleed and blend together into distinctively muted and subdued colorings.
In the United States, the plaid cotton madras shirt became popular in the 1960s among the post-World War II generation of preppy baby boomers.[2]
As early as the 1930s, cotton madras clothing was emerging as a
Madras today is available as tartan (plaid) patterns in regular cotton, seersucker, and as patchwork madras, meaning cutting several madras fabrics into squares or rectangles and sewing them back together to form a mixed pattern of various plaids.[citation needed]
National costumes
In 1994 the government of Antigua and Barbuda adopted a new national dress, which featured madras cloth, that had been designed by artist Heather Doram, as a result of a national competition.[6][7]
See also
- Check (fabric)
- Gingham
- Flannel
- Ivy League fashion
- Tartan
- Tattersall (cloth)
References
- ISBN 9780759121508.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n German, Deb (9 June 2015). "Checkered Past: A Brief History of the Madras Plaid Shirt". Orvis News. Archived from the original on 3 December 2020. Retrieved 2 August 2022.
- ^ "Cotton: A Yarn with a Twist". The Forum. BBC News. 19 December 2017. Archived from the original on 25 December 2022. Retrieved 2 August 2022.
- ^ Schneider, Sven Raphael (21 June 2019). "Madras Guide – How the Shirt, Pants & Jackets Became Popular". Gentlemans Gazette. Archived from the original on 3 July 2022. Retrieved 2 August 2022.
- ^ Coo, Stéphanie Marie R. (3 October 2014). Clothing and the colonial culture of appearances in nineteenth century Spanish Philippines (1820-1896) (PhD). Université Nice Sophia Antipolis. Archived from the original on 26 October 2022. Retrieved 2 August 2022.
- ISBN 9780761425700. Archivedfrom the original on 23 February 2023. Retrieved 2 August 2022 – via Google Books.
- ISBN 9781414448909. Archivedfrom the original on 23 February 2023. Retrieved 2 August 2022 – via Google Books.