Mark Alexander | Medina Wallcovering

Medina is a natural-fibre wallcovering with an irregular, close-packed surface: the fibres are laid in short, varied lengths rather than one direction, so the wall ends up mottled rather than striped. There is no repeat and no drawing, which means it behaves like a textured plain. The effect is closest to a limewashed wall worked by hand, but with real depth in the surface. Because there is no direction to it, a drop can be hung either way up without anyone knowing.

Each roll is 91 centimetres wide and 10.97 metres long, and there is no pattern repeat to allow for. Three colourways: Whitewash, the palest; Natural, the undyed fibre; and Indigo, a deep blue. Because the fibre is dyed in batches and takes colour unevenly, tone varies from panel to panel, noticeably so on the Indigo. That is inherent to the material and should be planned into the hang rather than treated as a fault.

We use Medina where a painted wall would be too plain and a pattern too much: a principal bedroom, a snug, the walls of a dining room. The Indigo makes a convincing evening room and the Whitewash keeps a small room open. Pair it with linen, plaster and matt timber, and use it across all four walls rather than on one. Order a sample to see it in your own light.

Hang paste-the-wall, butting the seams rather than overlapping, and wipe any paste off the face straight away, as it will not come out later. Reverse alternate panels so tonal shifts blend from one drop to the next. Order every roll at once and check that the batch numbers match. We would add a spare roll for trimming loss and for any repair further down the line.

• Roll width: 91 cm
• Roll length: 10.97 m
• Pattern repeat: None — textured plain
• Suitable for: Walls, feature walls, joinery panels
• Care: Wipe gently with a soft, dry cloth
• Collection: Collage III, Mark Alexander
• Colourways: 3 (Indigo, Natural, Whitewash)