Styling Your Home: Plains vs Patterns

When thinking about designing fabric I always try to visualise the end result - how a fabric might fit within a room scheme as curtains, blinds or upholstery. For me, although an interior inevitably evolves and should suit the home owner’s style and taste, selecting the soft furnishings alongside a wall colour at the outset is a great starting point. Fabrics give a room texture, balance, colour and design interest.

A dark blue wall is a great base from which to build out a distinctive style with curtains and blinds. For me subtlety is key, you can achieve a textural look using colour tones such as linens, soft greys or grey/blues. These tones inspired me when designing my Slade Stripe & Windmill Wood Dew fabrics with simple prints on a pure linen that create a smart, timeless interior.

Of course! On my travels to Sweden and Denmark I was struck by how a room with very little natural light can be lifted by white washing the walls and injecting colour and style through your fabrics. This inspired my Nordic Story fabrics which add punches of colour in graphic prints using fresh, natural colours.

Both serve a crucial purpose in a room’s design, but if I had to pick it would be print. Print works well to subtly break up large blocks of colour (like dark blue walls), whereas textured plains can create a bolder statement. Together print and plains work really well, for example a striped roman blind alongside plain curtains to fully dress your window can really define your room and create a great design statement.