Designer Fabric at a Price that’s Nice

A little ground work and initiative can get you the designer fabric you’ve always wanted
by Guy Little

Decorating on a budget is always a little difficult when deciding on the best possible schemes, colours, prints and weaves.  It requires much time and patience.  In my case – decorating my first apartment required plenty of bargain hunting - not just for furniture, but for fabrics too.

Fabric sales are a win when sourcing for large scale works like curtaining and major upholstery.   However, working on a budget is somewhat limiting when trying to source a fabric that really speaks to you.  Local fabrics, as in the South African textile industry, do a sufficient job and are affordable, but generally lack the ardour of their imported counterparts.   

On a visit to esteemed South African fabric distributor, St Leger & Viney, I glanced across the showroom to a sample hanging that instantly grabbed me.  It was absolutely perfect in complimenting the pink accents I wanted to achieve in my home.  Recognising that it was of course an import, I immediately became quite despondent.  It was beautiful though - percale-like cotton, so tightly woven it glistened.  The print had a brush-on-fabric quality, in hues of gentle pinks and maroon.  It was a toile designed by Clarence House and it was unlike any other I had ever seen before.   Quite naive and quaint in nature – the print revealed animals dressed up like ordinary people – utterly charming and reminiscent of artwork done by Beatrix Potter, but with more of a sketchy, gestural feel.   

A detailed example of the paint-on-fabric-style Clarence House has adopted - simple, elegant and understated

I went back to St Leger & Viney on more than one occasion to look at that fabric hanging.  I eventually enquired about the price only to find the fabric had been discontinued.  I abruptly asked the sales lady, “Well what are you going to do with the hanging then?”

She scurried to a back room with the sample whilst I waited in the showroom.  She arrived back stating, “We have no use for this anymore...”

The naive and somewhat juvenile qualities of the printed depictions only add to the fabric's charm and allure.  The above design by Clarence House

At the end of it all, I was able to purchase the hanging for only 50 bucks! A cracking bargain I thought – considering that that particular design retails in the thousands per meter.  The fabric was given to my upholsterer straight away to make two rectangular scatters.   They now take pride of place on two broadstripe-pink (St Leger & Viney) occasional chairs.

For more information on Clarence House, visit http://www.clarencehouse.com/ and St Leger & Viney; http://www.stleger.co.za/