DEDAR | Melusine

This Melusine works the branching motif as a thick, deliberately dishevelled fringe on Minima Mirabilia, a linen panama weave. Where the viscose version shifts in tone along each branch, the linen embroidery is blunt and matt, and the pronounced materiality of the stitching talks directly to the warp and weft it sits on. Worked in velvet stitch from the back of the cloth, the branches stand well clear of the surface, so the piece is as much about shadow as it is about line.

Made in Italy. The ground is 44 per cent viscose, 29 per cent cotton and 27 per cent linen; the embroidery is pure linen. Tested at 10,000 rubs on the Martindale scale, so it is a decorative rather than a hard-working cloth, and the cushion measures 68 by 90 centimetres. Three colourways: 001 Ivory, 002 Ivory / White and 003 Brown / Bronze / Orange, the only one of the three that brings colour rather than texture.

We use it in garden rooms and bedrooms, on a linen sofa or a cane chair, and at the end of a bed. It goes with oatmeal and chalk linens, rush matting, oak and unpolished plaster, and it is best left as the only textured piece in the group. Sold individually; made to order in Italy, so allow a few weeks.

The motif is directional and can be set upright, turned or off-centre, which is worth agreeing at order stage. Linen fringe will flatten if it is sat on, and the low rub count says the same thing: this is a cushion to look at rather than to lean into. Brush along the stitching, never across it. Made to order in Italy and not returnable.

• Composition: Ground: 44% viscose, 29% cotton, 27% linen. Embroidery: 100% linen
• Size: 68 x 90 cm
• Abrasion resistance: 10,000 rubs (Martindale)
• Care: Spot clean; dry clean the cover if removable
• Origin: Made in Italy
• Collection: Dedar
• Colourways: 3 (001 Ivory, 002 Ivory / White, 003 Brown / Bronze / Orange)