Back ground on Fair Linens

This past Sunday, everything was supposed to be back to green for a few weeks before heading into Lent.  Upon arrival at an early hour for church, I noticed the hangings were still white! Panic struck! The altar guild members were supposed to arrive soon, but time was tight, and the clock was ticking. I was supposed to be taking photos of several groups for a church directory, but the colors were wrong. My spouse and I headed to the sacristy, and Pastor started to remove the fair linen. It took a few moments before everything was properly set up in the color of the day. While the final altar linens were put in place, I noticed the sad condition of our fair linen.

The fair linen, which is the final linen placed on the top of the altar,  is defined by Percy Dearmer in his book “Linen Ornaments of the Church“as follows:

III. FOR THE LORD’S TABLE

THE FAIR LINEN

Since it looks better for the fair linen not to hang over the front of the holy table, besides being cleaner as well as more in accordance with tradition, this cloth should be exactly the same width as the mensa, and with none of it hanging over the frontlet. It hangs better and has a more dignified appearance if it is rather long, so as to reach to within about six inches from the ground (see Frontispiece). [Illustrated in Plates 2, 24, 27, 28, 34, of the Parson’s Handbook, 11th ed., 1928. Hierurgia Anglicana (for an example of 1668), 1903, Pt. II, Plate V. In the twelfth and thirteenth centuries the fair linen was spread in different ways, sometimes as here described, sometimes hanging all round the altar. The latter method is not so frequent in fourteenth- and fifteenth-century examples. See, e.g., those in Joseph Braun, Der christliche Altar, 1924.] It should be of good heavy linen, firmly hemmed; the hem along the sides may be 1 1/2 inches broad, and the ends will hang all the better if they are wider, say about 3 or 4 inches. The fair linen is generally marked for its special use by one, four, or five devices in white, red, or blue. These devices may be of any kind; crosses are easy to make, but not essential.

According to later custom the fair linen should only be put on the altar at the time of the Ministration (this was the English tradition before the Oxford Movement, it is also still the tradition in certain places abroad); though for convenience, when an altar is frequently used, it is often kept on it. [This is also the Eastern custom. In the West it was once the custom to keep the cloths on the altar out of service-time, as we learn from Gregory of Tours and other sources. From Isidore of Seville, Hrabanus Maurus, and others we learn that in the seventh century it was the custom to strip the altar of its cloths only from Maundy Thursday till Easter Even. According to Schmid and Doering, Der christliche Altar, 1928, it was still common in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries to keep altars covered except at this time.] In this latter case it should be washed once a month. If it is rolled on a roller and kept in a drawer, the expense of washing will be much reduced, especially in towns; but nothing should escape washing in Holy Week.

It is always interesting to go back and read an older source about Liturgical Items. Percy Dearmer was a well known author on many subjects relating to church furnishing.  In Percy Dearmer’s day, the above information about linens would translate as follows for an altar that is 6 feet long, 24 inches wide, and 39 inches tall:

The fair linen, when hemmed would be the exact width of 24″, and it would be the length would be 33″ hanging on one end, 72″ in the middle, and 33″ hanging on the opposite end, for a total length of 138″.   Now, there may very well be churches and altars out there that still follow this rule of thumb, having the ends of the fair linen fall down to within 6″ of the ground on the sides.

When I was checking with a friend about making fair linens, the rule of thumb she advised to follow was to have the fair linen extend on the ends the same distance as the Superfrontal, if one is used either alone or in combination with a Full Frontal.  Most Superfrontals used in combination with Full Frontals are between 9″ and 12″ long. So, again, using the above altar measurements, the fair linen would be 24″ wide x 90″ long, or 24″ wide x 96″ long, similar to the photo below.

There are many books that cover the topic of making lines for use in the church, and there may be other rules of thumb on the length to leaving hanging over the edge.  Select a noted resource, and follow that guideline.  Perhaps your church has a catalog from a vestment maker. Those often have a guide for measuring an altar for a linens. The CM Almy Catalog has nice instructions on measurements for altar linens.

In theory, fair linens are such a simple item to make. But, there are a few issues that might make one hesitate before jumping into the project. The first is working with Linen, and more exactly, 100% Linen.  Fear not!  Linen is such a lovely fabric, perfectly designed for the Lord’s Altar. And, believe it or not, sometimes it is even easier to press than the “easy press” alternatives.  Once linen is pressed, it stays neat and crisp looking. The  linen “look a likes” fall limp; they have no character. A nice fair linen that is well cared for can last for many years. It becomes a wise investment.

Another fear with using linen is hemming, and mitering corners. Again, this is easily resolved, and simple to do. The hems have folded mitered corners (no cutting, so no fear of mistakes) which can then be hand stitched, and hem stitched, or the hem may be sewn using a tiny slip stitch. Using a fine thread helps keep the stitches nearly invisible with working a slip stitch.

The final glitch in fair linen construction is the crosses in the four corners, and one cross in the exact center on the top of the linen.  One could purchase crosses and couch them in place; or select a simple design and hand embroidery the crosses. I have seen one with the crosses glued in palce (not something I would recommend). Today, the use of white is predominate, but in times past, the colors of red, blue, and green were not uncommon for use on altar linens.  I’ll play it safe, and stay with white, perhaps with a hint of cream, or ecru for contrast.

In a brief moment of panic and the hurried switching of hanging this past Sunday, I really “saw” our fair linen made from a linen look-alike material which is intended for clothing use. It was made at a time when the church budget was tight. It was made with care by a wonderful member of the congregation. The more it is washed, the limper it becomes. No amount of pressing with bring that fabric back to life. It has only been in service for 3 or 4 years. But sadly, it is in dire need of being replaced with something more appropriate……..  yet another Church Linen project to add to the list of items needing replacement.

Solo Dei Gloria

Be sure to visit our online store front Ecclesiastical Sewing where you may shop for Liturgical Fabrics, altar linen fabrics, church vestment making patterns, liturgical machine embroidery designs,  church vestment trims and notions and so much more. You may also find us on  Ecclesiastical Sewing  on Facebook , Twitter, and Pinterest. Sing up for our mailing list  at the bottom of the page on our online store front and receive a free copy of our Small Linens Booklet as our way of saying thank you for following along.