GP & J Baker | Glebe Plain

Glebe Plain is exactly what the name says: a flat, even cloth with no pattern and only the faintest slub from the linen in the mix. The viscose gives it a soft drape and a quiet lustre, so it hangs in rounder folds than a pure linen would and catches a little light along each pleat. It is the sort of cloth that makes a room look finished without adding anything to look at, which is most of the work a plain has to do.

It is 46 per cent viscose, 26 per cent cotton, 21 per cent linen and 7 per cent polyester, woven 140 centimetres wide with no repeat, and tested to 28,000 Martindale rubs, covering curtains, loose and fixed upholstery and bedspreads. Parchment is the colourway here, a warm off-white with a faint grey cast, closer to unbleached paper than to cream and easier to live with than a true white against most plaster.

We use it for long curtains in a sitting room, for loose covers that want to look soft rather than tailored, and for bed valances and headboards where colour would be an intrusion. It is a good partner for a patterned wallpaper or a strong rug, and it sits happily alongside oak, limestone and unpolished brass. Sold by the half metre; order a sample to see it in your own light.

With no repeat, calculate on length alone and allow generous hems, since a pale plain shows a skimped hem more than a pattern does. A pair of full-length curtains for a 180 centimetre window at two and a half times fullness takes about 11 to 12 metres including turnings. Interline them: the viscose content hangs well but needs weight behind it, and the interlining also protects a pale cloth from sun bleaching at the leading edge.

• Composition: 46% viscose, 26% cotton, 21% linen, 7% polyester
• Width: 140 cm (55 in)
• Abrasion resistance: 28,000 rubs (Martindale)
• Care: Dry clean only; do not wash, bleach or iron
• Collection: Essential Colour III, GP & J Baker
• Colourways: 1 (Parchment)