What's The Deal with Oil Cloth?

I came across a very cute tutorial over at The Purl Bee on how to make an oil cloth bag. I thought it was adorable, and, of course, now want to make one or a different bag out of oil cloth simply because of how cute their fabric was.

Since I didn't think I knew what oil cloth was, I decided to see what I could find...

Wikipedia defines Oilcloth as such: Oilcloth was, traditionally, heavy cotton or linen cloth with a linseed oil coating: it was semi-water-proof. The most familiar use was for brightly printed kitchen tablecloths. Dull colored oilcloth was used for bedrolls, sou'westers, and tents. By the late 1950's, oilcloth became a synonym for vinyl (polyvinyl chloride) bonded to a flanneled cloth.
Currently, oil cloth is Vinyl fabric backed with a polyester/cotton mesh. It's waterproof, and great for tons of stuff like: tablecloths, bags, book covers, and placemats. It also can easily be cleaned with a sponge and warm soapy water. This fabric is very sturdy and durable.

Lots of online fabric stores carry it, and can be found for around $7.00 a yard! The pictures above are swatches I found at Denver Fabrics. I have never bought from this store, but they have lots of stuff!

Now that I have looked at tons of oil cloth, I did know what it was, just not what it was called. Oh, now the possibilities are endless!!!