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Sales consultant Trevor Mohlala works with moveable wallpaper displays at the Home Fabrics showroom, helping designers scheme. -
Arielle Viljoen checks out homeware in the Jungle fabric collection. All Design Team’s fabrics are designed and printed in SA. -
Lise Butler and Amanda Haupt in the new Design Team flagship showroom.
PHOTOS Dook PRODUCTION Annemarie Meintjes WORDS Tracy Greenwood
Home Fabrics and Design Team have both opened impressive showrooms in Kramerville. We chatted to Marc Shotland, group PR and marketing executive at Home Fabrics, and Lise Butler and Amanda Haupt, co-owners of Design Team.
Which new ranges do you expect to fly?
Marc Shotland from Home Fabrics: Some personal favourite collections are Linen Roots from the Home Fabrics Basics collection. It’s a buffet of 100 % linens in natural, earthy colours in the most gorgeous floppy linens. Another favourite is Saraphina from Fabric Library – a broad collection of timeless paisleys, all the way through to modern interpretations of this classic design in deconstructed chenille textures, organic shapes and everlasting small prints and stripes.
Lise Butler and Amanda Haupt from Design Team: Our new Jungle collection. It is made up of very simply drawn leaves and natural elements with designs such as Foliage, Frangipani and Coral Cactus. Oversized scale or delicate line work gives the elements a contemporary look.
Which international fabric trends excite you right now?
Marc: Designers Guild’s latest collection, Caprifoglio. It demonstrates the versatility of a Designers Guild floral – whether a structured stripe of garlanded roses, a blushing multi-colour or one of many restrained intimate palettes – all on voluptuous velvets, crisp cottons, luxurious linens, swirling silk jacquards and glittering antique damasks.
Lise and Amanda: The renewed appreciation of beautiful hand-dyed indigo fabrics and exciting new natural fabrics in which hemp, linen and cotton are blended.
What sorts of trends do South African consumers adopt most readily?
Marc: Trends can be quite diverse, so I’d say it depends on personal preference. For example, fans of florals would find something to love in Designers Guild’s biannual launch of a new collection, including the florals for the season. It really comes down to personal style and choice.
Lise and Amanda: I suspect platforms like Pinterest are starting to play a major role in giving South Africans trend ideas that they can execute in their own homes. Trade shows such as 100 % Design, which make curated design and decor accessible to consumers, have a significant impact.
The colour of the season is…
Marc: Ballerina pink. It’s a timeless option for little girls’ rooms and French Provençal interiors, but can also work with a simple contemporary look. Try combining it with charcoal or black.
Lise and Amanda: For us, the introduction of emerald as a print colour has delivered a vibrant new colour palette when paired with natural and charcoal base fabrics.
Which textures and patterns are hot right now?
Marc: A standout is a surprising number of chic experimental patterns and textures highlighting embroidery and digital printing. Embroideries are vibrantly coloured and boldly geometric, sometimes featuring fringed elements. Style trends include florals and African designs, which are earthy and modern in shades of brown sparked with unexpectedly colourful accents. Technical standouts include chic geometrics and animal prints.
Lise and Amanda: We love unexpected combinations of colour and texture, such as seen in Ronel Jordaan’s felted pebbles – the beautiful softness of wool but in a gilded brass colour. We will also see a lot of florals and tribal geometrics coming through this season.
The Home Fabrics Showroom is situated at 8 Desmond Road, Kramerville, Johannesburg. The Design Team is situated on the 1st floor, T Maldini Building, 12 Kramer Road, Kramerville, Johannesburg.
