Where does the tea towel come from? In French-speaking countries, it is not even called the same thing everywhere: in Switzerland, people often say “linge de cuisine”, while in Belgium the expression “essuie-vaisselle” is also commonly used. The tea towel is one of those kitchen essentials we use every day and, like many traditional household items, it has a little history of its own.

Where does the tea towel come from? A brief history of a kitchen essential

In French-speaking countries, it does not have the same name everywhere. In Switzerland, people often use the term linge de cuisine, while in Belgium the expression essuie-vaisselle is also common. In fact, our Belgian customers often ask us to embroider the words “essuie-vaisselle” on our tea towels!

Whatever you call it, the tea towel is one of those essentials found in almost every kitchen. We use it without even thinking about it: to dry dishes, dry our hands, cover a dish or keep the worktop clean.

But like many traditional household objects, it has a little history of its own.

The tea towel, an object dating back to the Middle Ages

The French word « torchon » is much older than you might imagine.

Originally, it did not refer exactly to the neat rectangle of fabric hanging in our kitchens today. In the Middle Ages, the term could refer in particular to a bundle of straw or hay used for wiping or rubbing.

Then, around the 14th century, the word began to describe a piece of fairly coarse cloth used for various household purposes.

Little by little, fabric replaced straw, and the torchon gradually became closer to the tea towel we know today.

The word is also linked to the French verb « torcher », which was once used to mean wiping or rubbing.

From a simple piece of cloth to kitchen linen

For a long time, household linen was above all practical.

In kitchens, people used sturdy pieces of cloth that could be washed over and over again. A tea towel needed to absorb, dry and withstand heavy daily use.

Gradually, it became a proper part of the household linen cupboard, alongside tablecloths, sheets and napkins.

Depending on the region, local habits and available materials, tea towels took on different forms. Linen and cotton became particularly popular because they were so well suited to kitchen use.

Stripes, checks and the different weaves that we still associate with traditional tea towels today eventually became an inseparable part of their look.

Why is linen used for tea towels?

Linen is particularly well suited to the kitchen.

Naturally absorbent and durable, it stands up very well to repeated washing. The more it is used and washed, the softer and more pleasant it becomes. You can sometimes find old linen household textiles at flea markets and antique fairs, and it is striking to see how beautiful the fabric can still be after several decades.

That is probably one of the things we love most about linen: unlike many objects that we try to keep pristine, a beautiful tea towel is made to be lived with.

It can be washed, crumpled, used every day and then start all over again the next morning.

With time, it develops character and becomes even more beautiful.

The tea towel: practical, but not only

Today, the tea towel is no longer something that stays hidden away in a kitchen drawer.

As our kitchens have become true living spaces, the linens we use in them have also become part of their decoration.

A striped, checked or beautifully coloured tea towel can easily bring a different touch to a kitchen. Hung from an oven handle, placed on a worktop or used to serve bread at the table, it is one of those small details that make a home feel lived in.

And perhaps that is why this centuries-old object still feels so relevant today.

Its function has hardly changed: to wipe, protect and accompany the everyday gestures of life at home.

Only the fabrics, colours and the way we look at it have evolved.

An essential passed down through generations

There is something reassuring about simple objects that last.

The tea towel belongs to this category. It was found in our grandparents’ kitchens, it is still found in ours today, and it will probably remain there for many years to come.

At nähen, we particularly like the idea of reinterpreting traditional household linen essentials: keeping their simplicity and usefulness while giving them colours, materials and details that suit today’s homes.

Because after several centuries of history, the tea towel still has a long life ahead of it.