From Provence, these are double-sided cotton bedcovers that are quilted by hand or machine in formal geometric or floral pattern. The inner layers are almost always white cotton or wool, and in the past would always have been recycled and locally sourced.
All white boutis are extremely beautiful as the stitching creates the pattern, relying simply on light and shade to create the depth and form that makes these works so attractive. The most complex hand-stitched designs are works of art, and the neatest are real museum and collector’s items.
The typical Provençal prints, les Indiennes, are also used for boutis, where the stitching follows the idea or the form of the pattern as the support and not the show, meaning the designs are far less complex. A given line, whether to be followed broadly or exactly, demands less concentration and thus means hand stitching is easier
The Rajasthani ‘bootis’ are quilted ‘kantha’ work; rows of simple hand stitches, running stitches, hold several layers of cotton fabrics together for bedcovers.
The Provencal prints are more accurately called Les Indiennes, and they originate from Rhajasthan. It’s interesting that centuries later the two words for quilted printed cottons are Boutis and Bootis.