--- title: Photographic Fabrics: Looking Back at a Cool 1940s Printing Technique description: In 1947, when two different companies devised separate methods for printing photos on fabric, the technological breakthrough made headlines. canonical: https://time.com/3709094/vintage-tech-when-printing-photos-on-fabric-was-the-next-big-thing/ author: Ben Cosgrove article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2012-09-25T14:43:44.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T05:05:39.205Z og:title: Photographic Fabrics: Looking Back at a Cool 1940s Printing Technique og:description: In 1947, when two different companies devised separate methods for printing photos on fabric, the technological breakthrough made headlines. og:url: https://time.com/3709094/vintage-tech-when-printing-photos-on-fabric-was-the-next-big-thing/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt727dacb464da82d4/69877f2d428a9e8492cc7216/150213-fashion-fabrics-01.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Photo Fabrics 1947 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Photographic Fabrics: Looking Back at a Cool 1940s Printing Technique twitter:description: In 1947, when two different companies devised separate methods for printing photos on fabric, the technological breakthrough made headlines. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt727dacb464da82d4/69877f2d428a9e8492cc7216/150213-fashion-fabrics-01.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Vintage Tech: When Printing Photos on Fabric Was the Next Big Thing by [Ben Cosgrove](https://time.com/author/ben-cosgrove/) ## Ben Cosgrove Sep 25, 2012 2:43 PM UTC  Caption from LIFE. Surrounded by a skirt full of her own pretty face, model Norma Richter shows off dress made especially to demonstrate photographic fabrics. Caption from LIFE. Surrounded by a skirt full of her own pretty face, model Norma Richter shows off dress made especially to demonstrate photographic fabrics.Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images by [Ben Cosgrove](https://time.com/author/ben-cosgrove/) ## Ben Cosgrove Sep 25, 2012 2:43 PM UTC “Until now,” LIFE magazine told its readers in December 1947, “anyone claiming to have seen a dinner dress decorated with life-size photographs of the wearer would have met with breath-sniffing suspicion or clinical alarm. Today, however, such dresses can be made and photographs of everything from animals to pearl necklaces are being printed not only on dress fabrics but on upholstery, pillows, ties, bathing suits and lingerie.” That LIFE devoted several pages and numerous photographs to reporting on this new development (lame pun intended) is an indication of just how remarkable the achievement really was. Remember: This was happening 65 years ago. Men and women had been pushing the technical limits of photography ever since the medium was born, well over a century before — but no one , it seems, had ever bothered to devote the energy, time and money it would take to devise a method for printing pictures directly on to fabric. Two New York-based companies were out to change that grave dereliction: by 1947, the “photographic fabrics \[were\] being produced in quantity by two new and rival processes.” --- > “” --- --- > “” --- [**\[See more vintage science & technology on LIFE.com.\]**](http://life.time.com/vintage-sci-tech/) Today, of course, there are countless companies, and indeed entire industries, dedicated to printing photographs on every and any surface imaginable. Nevertheless, there’s something genuinely endearing about the pictures in this gallery — as if the act of printing photographs on fabrics was not merely a spiffy technological coup, but something akin to a small miracle. That said, we should probably ask ourselves how our own era’s giddy reporting on emerging technology will be viewed a hundred — hell, even five — years down the road. Will our breathless enthusiasm (_The new iPhone is here! The new iPhone is here!_) feel equally quaint? Will today’s cutting-edge tech feel similarly clunky and utterly “meh”? _Liz Ronk, who edited this gallery, is the Photo Editor for LIFE.com. Follow her on Twitter_ [_@lizabethronk_](https://twitter.com/LizabethRonk)_._  Caption from LIFE. Surrounded by a skirt full of her own pretty face, model Norma Richter shows off dress made especially to demonstrate photographic fabrics. Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Photographs on fabric, 1947. Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Photographs on fabric, 1947. Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Hedy Lamarr pillow is cuddled by a Lamarr fan. Hedy's face is very lifelike and about twice life size. Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Wall hanging showing lineman at work was made for American Telephone and Telegraph Company. It hangs in company's New York boardroom. Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Photographs on fabric, 1947. Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Photographs on fabric, 1947. Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Photographs on fabric, 1947. Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Skyline tie was made from picture of New York's Chrysler building, visible beyond wearer's shoulder. Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Frank Sinatra pictures printed on huge bolts of rayon, are trundled from the factory. Cloth will be used to cover pillows for adoring bobby-soxers. Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Photographs on fabric, 1947. Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Photographs on fabric, 1947. Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Yards of rayon embellished with enlarged photographs of rose are stretched on frame during manufacture . The cloth was previously dipped in sensitizing solution, squeezed with rollers, exposed and developed. Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Photographs on fabric, 1947. Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Photographs on fabric, 1947. Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Rose dress ... was designed by Martini to sell for about $70. Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Photographs on fabric, 1947. Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Photographs on fabric, 1947. Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Photographs on fabric, 1947. Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3709094/vintage-tech-when-printing-photos-on-fabric-was-the-next-big-thing/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3709094/vintage-tech-when-printing-photos-on-fabric-was-the-next-big-thing/"},"headline":"Vintage Tech: When Printing Photos on Fabric Was the Next Big Thing","datePublished":"2012-09-25T14:43:44.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:05:39.205Z","description":"In 1947, when two different companies devised separate methods for printing photos on fabric, the technological breakthrough made headlines.","url":"https://time.com/3709094/vintage-tech-when-printing-photos-on-fabric-was-the-next-big-thing/","keywords":["fashion","photography","LIFE Magazine","Nina Leen"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt727dacb464da82d4/69877f2d428a9e8492cc7216/150213-fashion-fabrics-01.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Ben Cosgrove","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/ben-cosgrove/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt727dacb464da82d4/69877f2d428a9e8492cc7216/150213-fashion-fabrics-01.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Photo Fabrics 1947","caption":"Surrounded by a skirt full of her own pretty face, model Norma Richter shows off dress made especially to demonstrate photographic fabrics.","creditText":"Nina Leen—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/fashion/","name":"fashion"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3709094/vintage-tech-when-printing-photos-on-fabric-was-the-next-big-thing/","name":"Vintage Tech: When Printing Photos on Fabric Was the Next Big Thing"}}]}] ```