These rather gorgeous cushions and soft furnishings are made from genuine indigo dye on a vintage loom in London. It’s the latest project from Lane By Post, the Nottingham-based company, whose pleated two tone lampshades have become such a hit.
The natural indigo dye is taken from the Indigofera Genus plant – commonly used for denim – but Lane has collaborated with the London Cloth company to produce a range of textiles which feel soft and luxurious rather than the usual tough jeans material we are used to.
This is because it was woven on a Dubcross loom from 1904 which weaves more slowly than the modern versions resulting in a looser, softer material which shows all the fibres too.
Lane’s creative director, Joff Casciani, who used to work for a fashion company, said: “I’ve always loved indigo since my early design career when I worked in menswear and it’s nice to be able to bring some of that inspiration to soft furnishings and accessories.”
The loom, which is own by Daniel Harris, was salvaged by him in 2104 and taken to the London Cloth Company – the first micro mill in the capital. It was founded in 2011 when Daniel found a rusting loom in a barn in Wales and naively assumed he could just clean it up and start weaving.
He then found two more and in the process of dismantling and cleaning them taught himself to weave in the process using techniques that have’t changed for decades on machines that date back to the 1870s. The company makes mostly to order but they do have some stock in house.
See the whole collection here.
This is so beautifully authentic, and it’s great to see the typical denim colour in a very different context; it really gives you an appreciation of the variation and flexibility of fabric colours, textures and types. I must say, I am a huge fan of the lampshades from Lane by Post. The pleat is such a classic idea but the design achieves such a modern feel and I would love to get hold of one!