The perfect blend between fabric and plastic – the boon of the 1950’s is showing up all over today, but in some interesting applications.
Modern Atelier
It’s spill-proof, waterproof, kid-proof. Obviously that makes it great for tablecloths, lunch bags, aprons, etc.
Perfect for outdoor (or indoor!) pillows.
Oilcloth Fabric from My Girls And Me
What about using oilcloth to cover chair bottoms – in your dining room! I love how fresh and fun these dining chairs look with this application!
via Strictly Simple Style
Who would have thought to paper the walls of a room in oilcloth? Fabulous.
Caroline Bruns’ bedroom featured on Ohdeedoh
Cath Kidston loves those nostalgic retro fabrics, and so do I. Here’s a little Cath Kidston oilcloth:
Lots of the oilcloth fabrics you’ll find are nostalgic, but not all. Check out this modern oilcloth tablecloth by Denmark’s Ferm Living:
This piece of oilcloth was simply tacked under the table to create a custom topper for a breakfast area. What a way to treat a dated tabletop!
via ReadyMade Magazine
I’ve always wondered what to do with oilcloth because i am so naturally attracted to it. im especially loving the pillows, seat covers and that doily print covering an old table!!
I’m thinking an oilcloth-covered message board would be cool for my office!
I am quite enamoured by the idea of using oilcloth on dining seats..seems so practical yet looks great as well.
i can totally see you doing that, carol! or you could make some of your fabulous pillows out of it 🙂
are these sold in fabric stores? how is this different from the kind of table cloth that has a wool-like backing we normally see?
there are limited patterns in most fabric stores, and most are felt-backed (they don’t have to be). there are lots of etsy stores that sell a fabulous variety of oilcloth, just go to etsy and search “oilcloth.” one great website source for oilcloth i found was sited in the post: http://mygirlsandme.com
The flannel back is cheap plastic. Oil cloth as we know it is laminated cotton fabric. Waterproof, wipe clean only. Not to be left in the sun too long, it fades, but wears like iron. My parents actually used it for wallpaper in the 60’s. We had the yellow gingham check in our kitchen. We had to keep a piece of it in school to cover our desks for art class in the 60’s also. I am going to use it to recover cushions for a retro aluminum glider.
That is a fabulous idea on the last table! Inexpensive and pretty.
Love all of the images and for years I have been in search of the real oilcloth…one that is protected using natural wax and not vinyl. Vinyl takes a long time to off gas. I have even contemplated creating my own line of natural oilcloth, but that seems so daunting and I wouldn’t know where to start. I believe the original oilcloth was swathed in lanolin. Hmmm…this has gotten me to thinking about it again :)…
wow, danielle – i didn’t know that about “real” oilcloth. thanks for the info – definitely think you should create your own line!
This is a great post – who would’ve thought? I love the pillows and seat covers. Hmmmm, has got me thinking 🙂
Wow, I hadn’t thought of oilcloth in years. I want to recover my dinette chairs, maybe have a cloth instead of placemats. Oilchoth is the perfect idea! Durable and wipe-able for little ones messes. Thanks
I have a problem I’d like to see if anyone can solve. My mother has a room in her home the has oil cloth wallpaper on the walls. She tried to paint it with flat paint and it rubbed right off! Now look terrible. Can someone give me an idea how to cover this mess? My husband and I are goint to be moving in with her and need to have a solution ASAP !
You simply pull off the oil cloth wallpaper. You may beed to sand the walks a bit to remove the wheat paste adhesive. You can find instructions online.