Mark Alexander | Decorer

Decorer is a flat woven linen tape from the Accent II collection, wider than the narrow braids in the range and with a closer, more structured weave. The face has a fine horizontal rib that reads as texture at arm's length and as a flat line from across a room, and the hand is dry and matt in the way that only linen is. The edges are firm enough to sit down neatly without any stiffening, which matters a great deal when a trim has to run a long straight drop.

It is 100% linen and sold by the half metre. Three colourways are offered: Ecru, the warm undyed neutral; Greenware, a soft grey-green; and Gunmetal, a deep charcoal. Greenware is the interesting one, quiet enough to use on a neutral cloth without looking like a feature, yet it brings a little colour into an otherwise plain scheme. Linen dyes with some variation along its length, which is part of how the tape is made rather than a fault in it.

We use Decorer as a leading-edge trim on linen or wool curtains, set back a few centimetres, and as a border on a Roman blind where the width gives the bottom of the blind some weight. It also works applied to the edge of an upholstered headboard. Gunmetal on a pale linen gives about the cleanest line we know, and it stops there. Order a sample to see it in your own light.

Hand-sew rather than glue. A flat linen tape takes adhesive badly: the glue darkens the fibre and telegraphs through as a shadow. Stitch along both edges with a matched thread, easing rather than pulling so that the tape stays flat. Mitre at corners, since at this width a folded corner is too bulky. Allow 10 to 15 centimetres on every run for returns and for turning the cut ends under, and press the finished edge before hanging.

• Composition: 100% LI (100% linen)
• Sold by: Half metre
• Suitable for: Curtain edges, Roman blinds, headboards, cushions
• Care: Dry clean recommended
• Collection: Accent II, Mark Alexander
• Colourways: 3 (Ecru, Greenware, Gunmetal)