Go crazy for wildly vibrant patterns
pATTERn is all over the place. High Street shops are bursting with it and designers are having the time of their lives. They’re mixing things up, mismatching, even clashing: spotty dresses with bands of florals; leopard-print blouses with flowery cuffs. By summer our wardrobes will be dizzy, but perhaps we’ll have gained the confidence to be more experimental with pattern at home. ‘ Pattern on pattern, clashing colour combinations, statement motifs — people are increasingly inspired to use pattern in more unusual ways,’ says Kate Butler, at Habitat.
One of its bestsellers is the Bloomsbury design by textile designer Margo Selby. It’s a celebration of spots. The geometric rug, £400, is bright and playful while the bedlinen in lint — soft pastel — offers a more subtle look, £84, habitat.co.uk. Textile designer Molly Mahon’s Sussex home is decked out with her prints. ‘I’ve never been afraid of putting my heart and soul into my house, but if you’re nervous of print, start with something small like a lampshade or cushion,’ she says.
Mahon looks for inspiration in her surroundings including at Charleston House in nearby Firle. The country home of the Bloomsbury set is a homage to pattern and a good example of how to layer textures, colours and prints without worrying too much about the consequences. Every surface is decorated from bedheads to doors and even the side of a bath.
‘There’s a wonderful photograph of them all sitting around the painted dining room table with zigzag wallpaper in the background,’ says Mahon.
The pink patterned table was the work of Vanessa Bell, the walls were stencilled by Duncan Grant and the curtains were made using widths of different fabrics.
But pattern does need a bit of order, says Cressida Bell, granddaughter of Vanessa, who carries on the artistic family tradition: ‘It’s fine to have two patterns, but they need a buffer zone between them: either a safe pattern like stripes or spots, or a plain area. I might have a patterned wall with a plain sofa against it, then patterned cushions, a plain carpet and patterned rugs.’
‘I would limit the number of colours, but never play safe.’
Bell’s lampshades are hand-painted with bold lines in striking shades. I like the jaunty Tropical Fruit shade (pictured right), and Clouds and Stars would look dreamy in a bedroom ( from £ 52.50 for 10in shade,
Pattern also does good service on the table. You can bring table linen out when you fancy a flourish of print and keep a cupboard full of options.
Mahon’s fresh yellow Lani tablecloth heralds summer and there are matching napkins (from £65 and £4 respectively,
mollymahon.com). While Akin & Suri’s geometric patterns also make a pleasing backdrop to supper. Available on Etsy in a variety of colourways. Lengths of fabric from £20 ( etsy.com).
Galleries seem to be also celebrating pattern, which is good news for those seeking inspiration. The work of Eric Ravilious (1903-1942), inspired by the repeats found in landscape — furrowed hills, rows of cyclamen or winding country lanes — is on display in a new exhibition at Compton Verney Art Gallery, entitled Ravilious & Co: The Pattern of Friendship. English Artist Designers 1922-1942.
His friend Enid Marx (1902-1998) became known for her industrial textiles created for London Transport in the Thirties and Forties. Her geometric ‘moquettes’ are no longer used as seating but you can buy them as cushions. Shield, Double Diamond and Chevron are all by Marx,
(£59.99, ltmuseumshop. co.uk). She also created travel-themed linings for a suitcase company, Watajoy. Wallpaper can be wonderfully effective inside wardrobes or cupboards. Molly Mahon’s Marwari Horse print was used by one customer to line a drinks cabinet (£140 a roll). A specially created wallpaper by Mark Hearld, of St Jude’s fabrics, is breathing new life into Compton’s British Folk Art galleries. The swirling swan makes an intriguing backdrop to sturdy furniture ( stjudesfabrics.co.uk). If all that sounds too, well, busy, try Abigail Edwards’ new book, Quiet Pattern, which ventures that pattern is more restful than you might think.