These Stylish New Accoutrements from Top Brands Meld Past and Present
Drawing from old-world decor, these wallpapers, fabrics, and passementerie are making a cavalier comeback
From Downton Abbey to Bridgerton, The Crown to The Gilded Age, period dramas are keeping television viewers glued to their sets—and reigniting a passion for the embellished decoration that defined an era. Yet, old-world grandeur through the lens of today’s inspired interior designers is decidedly forward-thinking. Rich with color and detail, sumptuous to the touch, and expressive in pattern and print, these contemporary offerings make capturing the look of the past exceptionally modern.
de Le Cuona
Patterns may fall in and out of vogue, but paisley has endured for centuries, something Bernie de Le Cuona, de Le Cuona’s founder, is acutely aware of. “This pattern is open to endless reimagining, but it is a classic that transcends time and fashions,” she says. This spring, the atelier introduces Elizabeth paisley, a cotton and wool blend woven on a jacquard loom in an earthy palette of rich colors. The design joins de Le Cuona’s Victoria paisley, inspired by one of Queen Victoria’s drawing rooms, and the longstanding favorite, Antique, a print reinterpreted from an archival textile discovered in India.
Sanderson
Although British fashion designer Giles Deacon’s haute couture is decidedly forward-thinking, his eclectic collection of wallpaper, fabric, and velvet for Sanderson comes from the past. Citing Greek mythology and medieval influences, along with the firm’s own vast archives, he’s reimagined sprightly nosegays, trompe l’oeil, and rows of ticking tape as modern patterns with romantic monikers like Aurelia’s Grail and Cupid’s Beau. “This collection seeks to immerse you in storytelling, crossing from subtle to boldly sublime and back again,” says Deacon.
Samuel & Sons
As the owner of a Loire Valley château, Timothy Corrigan is fluent in French traditional style. For Bagatelle, his latest offering with Samuel & Sons, the designer drew inspiration from the Parisian museum Hôtel de la Marine for a highly detailed and technically precise series of tassels, fringes, and braids. “It is so great to see how strongly trim has come back into style,” says Corrigan. “Young designers see it as an opportunity to take a standard product and make it bespoke.”
Watts 1874
Celebrating their 150th anniversary during the most recent Deco Off event in Paris, Watts 1874 marked the occasion by introducing their largest tiebacks to date—robust tassels almost five feet in length. Ornately embellished, the large-scale passementerie have been handcrafted with the same meticulous techniques for more than a century. The release coincided with the debut of the Bodley Papers, scenic wallpapers resurrected from the archives of company founder G. F. Bodley, that include chinoiserie, toile, and chintz with captivating scenography encapsulating a wide range of stirring motifs—from the patterns found in York’s famed Castle Howard to the events of a epic poem by Torquato Tasso that chronicles the tangled love story of sorceress Armide and the knight Renaud.
A version of this article first appeared in print in our 2024 Spring Issue under the headline “Grand Coup.” Subscribe to the magazine.