Cream Silk Taffeta
Chinese, India, Persian, English & French “taffety” or taffeta, such as this Cream Silk Taffeta, were all commonly advertised in the 18th and 19th centuries. Woven plain, they were made in a variety of colors, some changeable, some “chine” or warp printed, some with stripes, checks and patterns. All were woven in a like-fashion varying only in their width or number of silk yarns in the warp and weft. After the American Revolution, great quantities of silk came to the colonies directly from China, including taffetas, satins and lustrings. All Social levels wore silk, down to the lower sorts, who could find silk in the second hand market or had it provided by a master or mistress.
