A historic home in Bedfordshire is brought to life with the season’s most beautiful colours, patterns and textiles
Twice a year, there is an explosion of new fabrics. It's an exciting time, but I'm not sure how those of us who are liable to have our heads turned by every swathe of jacquard or velvet are supposed to cope; I have never knowingly been able to walk into a showroom filled with sumptuous fabrics and leave without having mentally reupholstered all my furniture. And this year’s textile collections are all so tempting. The prints, the colours, the textures – when we first began working our way through them, there was almost too much beauty to process. Designers would send samples to our office, or we’d visit their showrooms for previews, and surrender to a luxurious kind of sensory overload. It’s a hard life, I know.
The great case for investing in beautifully made fabric, of course, is that it should endure. At House and Garden we spend a lot of time showing the readers what they can buy, but I hope we also encourage them (you), to follow that excellent rule: ‘buy better, buy less’. Style director, Wojtek Van Portek’s latest shoot, featured in our new October issue, is a dazzling example of this.
Instead of creating an environment from scratch, exclusively using new things, his pick of the new season’s fabrics are mixed with the furniture and textiles of Turvey House, an 18th century Grade I Listed manor in Bedfordshire. Despite the multi-century age gap, fresh offerings from Romo and Ralph Lauren sit comfortably alongside ancient damask wallcoverings and other period features, and this is exactly what House & Garden has always been about: seamlessly integrating new purchases with the preexisting decor of your inherited country pile. Or something like that. We’re not supposed to entirely redesign our houses twice a year – we’re supposed to select one or two favourites from the Colefax & Fowler offering, and mix them in with what we already have, one cushion at a time.
For his first new-collections shoot, Wojtek distilled the myriad options into three categories that capture the enduring appeal and forward-looking spirit of British style: chintzy florals, stripes and opulent patterns.There was talk of plaids too, but they fell by the wayside… Some Nina Campbell ginghams snuck in, though. We shot during one of this summer’s many heatwaves, running manically around the estate, laden with cushions and fabric rolls.
Fans of Wojtek’s work may have noticed that he enjoys a stack. Perhaps you saw his June Weekend Bags shoot in which bags are balanced on top of vases and books, or his May issue Breakfast shoot, where toast and silverware were piled atop a CC Moulton pouffe. Playful and precarious, cushion stacks were inevitable. The spiral staircase that leads to Turvey House’s attic, purportedly acquired from the Great Exhibition in 1851, provided the perfect setting for a monumental stack. But of course, the real stars of the shoot were the labradors.
Mark Anthony Fox1/9Cushions (left) ‘Santal’ cotton mix (celadon), by Quenin, £366.50 a metre, Lelièvre, (right) ‘Haseley Acorn’ cotton, £600 each, Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler. fabric rolls (from left) ‘Trametes’ cotton mix (carex/apatite), £160, House of Hackney; ‘Arabesque’ viscose mix (harvest), £170, Kirkby; ‘Odessa’ polyester mix (zinc/camel), by Serena Dugan Studio, £264, The Fabric Collective. ‘Arabesque’ viscose mix (pine green), as before; ‘Odessa’ polyester mix (ochre/petal), as before; ‘Foyer’ viscose mix (tobacco, afterglow), £110, Kirkby. Tablecloth ‘Euston II’ cotton (orange/putty), by Gainsborough, £230, George Spencer Designs.
Mark Anthony Fox2/9Cushions from top ‘Oriente Italiano’ cotton mix (miele), Rubelli; with ‘Délicat’ cord with tape (walnut), Samuel & Sons. ‘Golden Hills’ linen (burgundy), £321, Schumacher. ‘Santal’ cotton mix (celadon), Lelièvre. ‘Wildflower Meadow Brocade’ viscose mix (sapphire); with ‘Whitney’ cotton mix cord with tape (ginger), Samuel & Sons. stool ‘Pomona Poef’ beech stool in ‘Deuce’ cotton mix chenille, £900, CC Moulton; base in ‘Pomona’ cotton/silk (amethyst/chalk), £230, Susan Deliss; chair ‘Elbow’ chair, with seat cushion in ‘Hardwick’ cotton, £3,200 as seen, Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler; round cushion in ‘La Traversée’ polyamide mix (cuivre), £218, Lelièvre; with ‘Délicat’ cord with tape (walnut).
Mark Anthony Fox3/9Fabrics from left ‘Osmington’ cotton (green stripe), by Ramm, Son & Crocker, £152, Turnell & Gigon. ‘Genevieve’ linen/cotton (old blue), £196, Colefax and Fowler. ‘Brompton Stock’ cotton, £181, Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler. ‘Geneviève’ linen (teal/coral/ivory), by Nina Campbell, £115, Osborne & Little. ‘Ebury Chintz’ cotton (green/brown), £181, Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler ‘Geneviève’ linen (teal/coral/ivory), as before. ‘Lilies and Geraniums’ cotton, £204, Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler. cushions, anti-clockwise from top left, ‘Moiré Tissé’ silk/viscose bolster (pandolfini), £406, CC Moulton. ‘Indian Fuchsia’ cotton cushion, £450, Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler. ‘Oriente Italiano’ cotton mix (miele), as before; with ‘Délicat’ cord with tape (walnut), as before. ‘Petersham Check’ frilled cotton cushion, £714, Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler. ‘Récital’ polyester (doré), by Quenin, £180.50; and ‘La Traversee’ polyamide mix (cuivre), £218; both Lelièvre; with ‘Délicat’ cord with tape (walnut), as before. ‘She Walks in Beauty’ cotton (document), as before. ‘Exquise’ viscose mix (nattier), by Quenin, £191.50, Lelièvre; with ‘1/4” Annecy’ cotton mix cord with tape (sea grass), £19.50, Samuel & Sons. ‘Wildflower Meadow Brocade’ viscose mix (sapphire), by Highgrove by Sanderson Fabrics, £136, Sanderson; with ‘Whitney’ cotton mix cord with tape (ginger), by Lori Weitzner, £31, Samuel & Sons.
Mark Anthony Fox4/9‘Savage’ cotton mix (baltic), by The Sign, £210, Chase Erwin. ‘Portofino’ cotton/linen (bronze), by Maison de Vacances, £125, Selfridges. ‘Diamond Stripe’ linen (midnight), £230, Sarah Vanrenen. ‘Penelope Round’ wood ottoman, £2,700, Trove by Studio Duggan; upholstered in ‘Celino’ cotton/linen (seaglass), £128, Romo.
Mark Anthony Fox5/9‘Santal’ cotton mix (celadon), by Quenin, £366.50, Lelièvre. ‘Camellia’ cotton, £181, Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler. ‘Bordage’ cashmere/goatskin pillow, £1,400, Hermès. ‘Honfleur Check’ cotton mix cushion (coral), £250, Nina Campbell. ‘Chintz 21’ linen (carmine blue), £185, Parker & Jules. ‘Colonnade’ cotton (green), £110, NiX by Nicola Harding. ‘Ingrid’ linen cushion (desher red), £145, Cathy Nordström. ‘She Walks in Beauty’ cotton (document), £272, Schumacher. ‘Malise’ cotton mix (emerald, chocolate), both £270.60, Cinny. ‘Oriente Italiano’ cotton mix (miele), by Ginori 1735, £270, Rubelli; ‘Délicat’ polyester mix silk cord with tape (walnut), £26, Samuel & Sons. ‘Fyne’ wool (leaf/denim), £115, Osborne & Little; ‘Simbel Gold’ silk mix trim, £78, Robert Kime. ‘Auto Primo’ cotton/polyester (monza, bamba), both £230, CC Moulton. ‘Deuce Button’ cotton mix cushion (alpino), £225, CC Moulton. ‘Pergola Embroidery’ linen mix (mineral blue), £154, Sanderson. Floral cushion, courtesy Turvey House. ‘Scotia’ wool mix (ocre/orange), £83.20, Casamance; ‘Swiss Velvet Piping’ nylon/polypropylene trim (plum), £21.50, Samuel & Sons; ‘Stone House Stripe’ wool, by Ralph Lauren Home, £143, Designers Guild. ‘Weymouth Stripe’ cotton (slate blue/mocha), £46, Ian Mankin; ‘Solent Stripe’ cotton (cadet blue), £65, George Spencer Designs. Floral cushion, courtesy Turvey House. ‘Honfleur’ check cushion cotton mix (blue), £250, Nina Campbell. ‘Savage’ cotton mix (baltic), by The Sign, £210, Chase Erwin. ‘Woodland Rose’ linen cushions (tobacco & rust, biscuit & blush), £185 each, Studio Atkinson. ‘Wildflower Meadow Brocade’ viscose mix (sapphire), by Highgrove by Sanderson, £136, Sanderson; ‘Whitney’ cotton mix cord with tape (ginger), by Lori Weitzner, £31, Samuel & Sons. ‘Ingrid’ linen cushion (khaki), £145, Cathy Nordström. ‘Malise’ cotton mix (chocolate), £270.60, Cinny. ‘Bedford Tapestry’ cotton mix, by Ralph Lauren Home, £235, Designers Guild. ‘Moiré Tissée’ silk/viscose bolster (pandolfini), £406, CC Moulton. ‘Oriente Italiano’ cotton mix (iris), by Ginori 1735, £270, Rubelli. Mustard cushion, courtesy Turvey House. ‘Deuce Button’ cushion as before. ‘Haseley Acorn’ cotton cushion, £600, Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler. ‘Trefoil’ ottoman (green velvet), £7,008, Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler.
Mark Anthony Fox6/9‘Trametes’ cotton mix (carex/apatite), £160, House of Hackney. ‘Odessa’ polyester mix (ochre/petal), £264, The Fabric Collective. ‘Clare’ wool (prune), £339, Pierre Frey. ‘Odessa’ (zinc/camel), as before. ‘Kildare’ wool (green), £312, Pierre Frey. ‘Foyer’ viscose mix (afterglow), £110, Kirkby. ‘Northanger’ cotton mix (henna prune old gold), £380, Watts 1874; with ‘Icona’ polyester braid (cuivre), £27, Houlès.
Mark Anthony Fox7/9Sofa covered in ‘Salisbury’ hemp (tetbury blue), £126; with frill in ‘Tetbury Stripe’ linen mix (jodhpur blue), £106; both by Highgrove by Sanderson, Sanderson. square blue cushions ‘Deuce Button’ cotton mix (alpino), £225, CC Moulton. bolsters from left ‘Oriente Italiano’ (iris), as before. ‘Bedford Tapestry’ cotton mix, by Ralph Lauren Home, £235, Designers Guild. ‘Exquise’ viscose mix (nattier), as before; with ‘1/4” Annecy’ cotton mix cord with tape (sea grass), £19.50, Samuel & Sons. round cushions from top ‘Wildflower Meadow Brocade’ viscose mix (sapphire), by Highgrove by Sanderson, £136, Sanderson. ‘La Traversée’ polyamide mix (cuivre), £218, Lelièvre. ‘Golden Hills’ linen (burgundy), £321, Schumacher. square floral ‘Clarissa Chintz’ cotton cushion, £480, Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler.
Mark Anthony Fox8/9Duvet ‘Midi Striped’ cotton/linen (cobalt & tofu), £85; and ‘Skinny Striped’ cotton/linen (cobalt & tofu), both £85; Colours of Arley; with ‘Evienne’ cotton mix piping with tape (raspberry), £59, Samuel & Sons. draped fabric ‘Camellia’ cotton, £181, Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler.
All fabric and trim prices are per metre. With thanks to Turvey House, Bedfordshire.
