GP & J Baker | Rainstorm

Rainstorm is a wide woven stripe from Kit Kemp's collection for GP & J Baker: broad bands broken up by finer lines, all built into a cotton weave so the colour is solid and the surface matt. The 34 centimetre repeat is generous, which means the stripe stays legible on a full-length curtain instead of dissolving into stripes in general. The fine lines that break up the wide bands are what make it work: without them the cloth would read as a block of colour rather than a stripe.

It is 100 per cent cotton at 136 centimetres wide, with a 34 centimetre horizontal repeat and no vertical repeat. GP & J Baker list it for curtains, loose and fixed upholstery and bedspreads. Three colourways: Spice, which is warm and earthy; Blue, which is the coolest and the most classical; and Green, which sits naturally against wood and matting. All three are single-family colourings and easy to place.

A wide stripe wants length, so curtains first, full drop, pinch-pleated, hung high. After that, loose covers on a deep sofa where a whole band can run down each cushion, and a headboard cut so the stripe is centred on the bed. It also makes a good pair of door curtains, and in Blue it will stand in for a ticking in a plain bedroom without looking like one. Sold by the half metre; order a sample to see it in your own light.

Set the stripe out before cutting: on a 136 centimetre width you get four repeats, and a curtain drop should be planned so a full band, not a half one, falls at each leading edge. There is no vertical repeat to match, so cutting waste is low, and the cloth railroads cleanly for anything wider than the roll.

• Composition: 100% Cotton
• Width: 136 cm (53.5 in)
• Pattern repeat: 34 cm horizontal
• Care: Dry clean professionally only; do not wash, bleach or iron
• Collection: Kit Kemp Stripes, GP & J Baker
• Colourways: 3 (Spice, Blue, Green)