The Rise to Fashion of the Paisley Shawl

At a time when shawls of any type were seemingly vogue, the Paisley shawl, a symbol of status, was subsequently reproduced to fit the modern income. Americans, long apt to follow the fashion lead of England’s Queen Victoria, were quick to pick up the trend she began when she purchased 17 paisley shawls in 1842. Paisley shawls were originally imported from Kashmire in the late 18^th century. Kashmir shawls had been woven there from the eleventh century upwards. The most desired, and softest, of those woven were made from the fleece under the rough outer hair of the underbelly of wild central Asian goats. This hair was saved for only the best, and thus most costly shawls. Most paisleys were made from the fleece of domestic pashmina goats, making them a bit less expensive.

The paisley design known today was popularized by the 1770’s, after which it continued to be modified and reworked. The ‘paisley’ motif, known as the boteh and now called the Paisley pine can be traced back to ancient Babylon. The teardrop shape, now so prevalent, was then used to symbolize the growing shoot of a date palm, which provided food, fibers to weave clothing from, and shelter. The shoot was known as ‘The Tree of Life’ and regarded as a symbol of fertility.

The difference between Kashmir shawls and European shawls may seem minute, but it is an interesting fact to state. Original Kashmir shawls were woven from hair and were thus lighter and smoother than their counterparts, which were made from silk or wool. There was also variation in the technique of weaving. The shawls exported from Kashmir took from two to three years to complete. This alone made them a status symbol, combined with the fact that they were extremely scarce, one can see why they were so desired when modern weaving techniques made them available to the average person. French and English textile manufacturers produced imitation Kashmir shawls by using more readily available materials, such as silk and wool. The most costly of these imitations came from Paris, France, where shawls were woven by talented weavers. By the 1860s, Paisley, Scotland, led the market in shawl production, manufacturing them for half the cost of their competitors. To reduce the time it took to weave the shawls, they were woven in pieces to be sewn together later, often in order with the design desired by the customer. Paisley shawls of the mid-1800s were sometimes extremely large, often around 5ft by 13ft. By the 1870s, however, these stunning textiles had gone out of fashion and were simply a vogue of the past.

As fashion evolved over time so did the shape of the Kashmir shawl. With the increasing width of skirts in the 1840s and into the 1860s, the paisley shawl also noted an escalating width. Paisley shawls of the mid-1800s were sometimes extremely large, often around 5-9 ft long and 12-20 ft wide. Later versions of the shawl, known as “plaids”, oddly not for their design, were twice as long as they were wide. These “plaids” averaged 10 ft by 5 ft or larger. Square shawls were folded into triangles with the top flap just slightly turn over at the top, while large rectangular shawls could be folded in two.

Paisley shawls remained in fashion until around the 1870s, spanning almost 100 years in fashion (beginning in 1790). The Paisley shawl was one of the eras most beautiful and fashionable accessories, and was truly priceless in its style.

References:

Bury, Lynne. “Victorian Shawls; Not Just for Warmth” Civil War Lady Magazine, Number 22, p 14-18. Publisher Joy Melcher, Pipestone, MN.

Country Living magazine article, “A Passion for Paisley” by Allison Kyle Leopold

Nov. 2002 pg. 61-64.

http://www.victoriana.com/library/paisley/shawl.html