MORE PRINTED VELVET

You couldn't really get two designers further apart than the granddaddy of all the Arts and Crafts, William Morris, and the 80's badboy of Paris couture, Jean Paul Gaultier! But I have been so bold as to unite them here in my quest to highlight the rich detailing, and plush texture of some more printed velvets. All made possible, I have discovered, because of the wonders of modern technology and specifically, digital printing. Computerised digital printing allows colour to be applied to fabric in millions of tiny but precise dots of ink that penetrate the pile of the velvet rather than sitting, slightly stiffly, on top, as conventional printing methods were inclined to. The result are prints of amazing detail and lavish colour that lose none of the soft velvety texture of the basecloth.


Morris & Co's Forest Velvet Azure from the Archive ll print collection, based on an 1887 tapestry design.


Lelievre's Fangio Petrole from their Jean Paul Gaultier collection La Defile, a photo-realist montage complete with every fashionista's dream: a logo.


Romo's Black Edition's Pleasure Garden Velvet Bloom from the Jessica Zoob 'Desire' collection, where her impressionistic paintings have been faithfully transcribed to fabric.

Unbelievably these velvets have a Martindale score of between 20,000 and - in the case of the beautifully delicate Jessica Zoob print - 100,000 rubs so they are sturdy enough for upholstery yet fluid enough for curtains. Tempted?