One of the weaknesses of being an antique dealer is that sometimes it is difficult to part with the items you find. Like many dealers, I love the items I sell and among my many loves is French linens. Well, let me rephrase that.  I love buying French linens but I have a difficult time parting with them.

Photo: Sky Lark House

I have used French linens many times, to re-upholster furniture.  For example, I used vintage french mattress ticking on this settee.

Photo: Sky Lark House

As a point of reference, here is a “before” photo of the same settee. 

Photo: Sky Lark House

French linen was used to reupholster this chair.  The fabric was a really beautiful homespun hemp material. Antique hemp is extremely durable fabric that holds up well over the course of time. It is almost always my first choice to use for any upholstery project.  A dealer once said to me: “it wears like iron”.  She was right.  This fabric is unbelievably strong and durable. 

Photo: Sky Lark House

Here is a “during” the removal of the old upholstery photo of the chair.  You can’t tell from the photo, but that upholstery was used beyond its useful life. 

A number of you have reached out to me to ask about buying French linens and if I could recap on sharing my sources with you.  Sure.  Happy to do so.

Photo: Sky Lark House

In addition to using French linens for upholstery, I also use the torchons or large kitchen towels.  They are a generous size and so practical.  Also most of them have a loop stitched into one corner or at the top so the towels can be hung up. (As an aside, why isn’t that a standard feature on American kitchen towels)

Photo: Sky Lark House

So before I prattle on any longer – HERE is a link to a blog post I wrote for some sources of antique linens.  This includes French fabrics as well as other fabrics.

Below are some sources for French linens that are in the United States.  I find that shipping costs from overseas can add up pretty quickly. 

My go to source for French linens is Wendy at the Textile Trunk. I purchased the tan mattress ticking used in the settee shown above from Wendy. The nice thing about her shop is that shipping is included in the price of the fabric. 

Aimee’s French Market has a great selection of French torchons or kitchen towels.  

Finally, Red Stripe Vintage, which is located in California, has a great variety of French linens and fabrics.  

So there is a quick summary of some sources for you.  I hope you find this useful.  Of course, if you are out and about antiquing, keep your eyes open for beautiful French linens that are sold in your local antique stores.  I find that local stores often offer these linens at very fair prices.