GP & J Baker | Ashcombe

Ashcombe belongs to GP & J Baker's Essential Colours range, the house's working plains and textures rather than a figured pattern, here woven from viscose, cotton, linen and polyester into a fine, close ground with no repeat to speak of. It is the kind of cloth the house keeps in constant, wide production because it sits behind a pattern as readily as it stands alone, and its warm parchment tone makes it one of the easiest of the house neutrals to place.

Composition is 50 per cent viscose, 33 per cent cotton, 14 per cent linen and 3 per cent polyester. It is 137 centimetres wide, tested to 27,000 double rubs on the Wyzenbeek test, and GP & J Baker specify it for curtains and both loose and fixed upholstery. There is one colourway, Parchment, a warm, pale neutral.

We use Ashcombe as a sofa or armchair fabric in a room where the pattern is elsewhere, on the curtains or the walls, or as a plain curtain in a pared-back scheme. It also covers a footstool or dining seat well, and a run of it along a window seat or bench gives a room a dependable, quiet ground to build around. Pair it with a documentary print or an embroidery from the archive for contrast. Sold by the half metre; order a sample to see it in your own light.

At 27,000 double rubs on the Wyzenbeek scale it is suited to genuine upholstery use, though we would keep it to lighter or occasional-use pieces rather than a family sofa in daily wear. Being close to a plain, there is almost no pattern to match, so quantities are calculated on drop and width alone. For curtains, line as usual, and order from a single batch for consistent colour.

• Composition: 50% viscose, 33% cotton, 14% linen, 3% polyester
• Width: 137 cm (54 in)
• Abrasion resistance: 27,000 double rubs (Wyzenbeek)
• Suitable for: Curtains, loose and fixed upholstery
• Care: Dry clean only; do not wash, bleach or iron.
• Collection: Essential Colour II, GP & J Baker
• Colourways: 1 (Parchment)