GP & J Baker | Thurloe Plain

Thurloe Plain is a straightforward plain with a viscose majority and a good deal of linen, which is the combination we come back to most often: the viscose makes it hang, the linen gives it a dry, matt face, and the cotton in between keeps it stable. There is no repeat and no texture to speak of, so it is simply colour, evenly held, from one end of the piece to the other.

Composition is 48 per cent viscose, 25 per cent cotton, 21 per cent linen and 6 per cent polyester, woven 140 centimetres wide and tested to 30,000 rubs on the Martindale scale, which the supplier covers for curtains, loose and fixed upholstery and bedspreads. Aqua is the colourway, a soft green-blue that reads clean against white and turns greyer beside warm stone, so it is worth trying in the room it is going into.

We would use Thurloe Plain on a sofa in a garden room, on loose covers, or as full-length curtains in a bedroom that looks onto trees. It is also the right cloth for the outside backs and cushion reverses on a piece fronted in something patterned. Put it with cream, sand and pale oak, and let a stronger blue appear only on cushions. Sold by the half metre; order a sample to see it in your own light.

No repeat means no matching, so quantities are length plus turnings; a two-seat sofa takes about 13 metres and a pair of interlined curtains for a 200 centimetre window around 13 as well. Order in one batch for dye lot consistency. At 140 centimetres you can railroad a short bench or headboard to avoid a seam, but not a full-length sofa back.

• Composition: 48% viscose, 25% cotton, 21% linen, 6% polyester
• Width: 140 cm (55 in)
• Abrasion resistance: 30,000 rubs (Martindale)
• Care: Dry clean only; do not wash, bleach or iron
• Collection: Essential Colour III, GP & J Baker
• Colourways: 1 (Aqua)