Papillon Gifts

Our website contains a great range of Papillon products for every Papillon lover and Papillon owner. The products we have available include Papillon Throws, Papillon Cushions, Papillon Wall Hangings and Papillon Bags.

The Papillon wall hanging use between nine and seventeen miles of thread in each design. The combination of thread colours and weaves creates a rich, fresh experience that changes with each viewing angle and will enhance any room. The wall hangings are supplied in the UK with a wooden hanging rod, which can be upgraded to one of the tapestry hanging rods available in our Wall Hangings Section if required.

The Papillon throws measure 54 inches by 54 Inches and are made from 100% all natural high-quality cotton.

The Papillon shoulder bags are constructed of high quality, 100% natural cotton. Measuring 17” wide by 17” tall with two black canvas straps, the bag can hold an array of items.

The Papillon Cushions are again made from 100% natural cotton and measure 17” by 17”. The cushion pad (inner) complies with the furniture and furnishings regulations 1988 and is removable.

All our Papillon merchandise is manufactured to the highest standards and can be purchased with the knowledge that we offer a full money back guarantee if not completely satisfied with your purchase.

So if there’s a Papillon lover in your life, choose from our range of Papillon gifts by clicking on the following link:

http://www.abentleycushions.co.uk/products.asp?search4=papillon

General Information On The Papillon 

The Papillon is a small dog breed with distinctive large, fringed ears that earned it its name, the French word for butterfly. The Papillon is believed to be one of the oldest of the toy breeds. Though known to be reserved with strangers, these dogs can also be protective of a human family member, and are good alarm dogs while still affectionate to those they know. Papillons are very athletic, enjoying running or chasing, but usually enjoy staying indoors.

Papillons are white with markings of any colour. However, the most distinctive aspect of the Papillon is its large ears, which are well fringed with coloured (not white) silky hair. The colour covers both eyes and the front and back of the ears to give the proper butterfly look. A white blaze and noseband on the face is preferred.

There are two ear variations of this breed, the completely upright ears of the more common Papillon, and the dropped spaniel-like ears of the Phalène. The AKC considers the Phalène and the Papillon the same breed. Countries whose breed clubs follow the FCI standard consider Papillons and Phalènes two separate breeds.

The Papillon has an abundant, flowing coat, short on the head but with a profuse frill on the chest. The Papillon has no undercoat. The tail is a plume of long hair. The head is slightly rounded between the ears, and the muzzle is fine, tapering, and narrower than the skull with an abrupt stop.

The ideal size varies slightly among different organizations´ breed standards, but it generally ranges from 8 inches (20 cm) to 11 inches (28 cm) at the withers.

The History of the Papillon is traced through works of art. The earliest toy spaniels resembling the Papillon are found in Italy. Tiziano Vicelli (Titian) painted these small dogs in many famous paintings including the Venus of Urbino (1542). Other well known artists who included them in paintings are Watteau, Gonzalez Coques, Fragonard and Mignard. In a painting after Largillierre in the Wallace Collection in London, a Papillon is clearly shown in a family portrait of Louis XIV. Papillons are also in paintings of royal families around Europe and paintings of merchant class families. The breed was popular in England, France, and Belgium which are considered counties of origin by the FCI.

There are many stories about the Papillon. Marie Antoinette was said to have walked to the guillotine clutching her small dog under her arm. Tradition has it that her dog was a small spaniel that had been brought to the French court from Spain on the back of pack mules. According to the story, her pup was spared and cared for in a building in Paris still called the Papillon House. Marie´s small spaniel was said to have descended from a very old drop-eared breed known as the Epagneul Nain Continental, or Continental Dwarf/Toy Spaniel that appeared in church frescos and paintings as early as the 13th century.

The Papillon is still officially referred to as the Epagneul Nain Continental (ENC) in non-English-speaking countries. The name Squirrel Spaniel also has been used, most likely referring to an earlier standard in which the tail set is described as "curling over the back as a squirrel´s." One version of the history of the two varieties of ear shape in the ENC ("Papillon" to denote the erect ear and "Phalène" to denote the dropped ear) is that toward the end of the 19th century, breed fanciers bred a version of the spaniel whose ears stood up. This dog was said to have been nicknamed papillon based on the impressively large, erect ears that resembled the wings of a butterfly. The drop-eared variety of the breed came to be called the Phalène (which means "night moth"). Both types are still bred today and appear in the same litter. The Papillon variety is much more common, although recently the Phalène has undergone resurgence in popularity.