Mark Alexander | Melange

Melange is a flat braid woven from a blended linen and wool yarn, so the colour is not solid. It is flecked, with lighter and darker fibres showing through each other along the length. Wool gives it a softer hand than a pure linen tape and a little more spring, so it sits round a curve more willingly. It is a trimming that adds warmth and a bit of movement to an edge without introducing a pattern of its own.

The composition is 52 per cent linen, 41 per cent wool and 7 per cent polyester, supplied by the half metre. Seven colourways are made: Natural, Plaster and Silverbirch in the pale neutrals, Boulder in the greys, Moccasin and Chestnut in the warm browns, and Ottanio as the one teal. The flecked yarn means each colourway carries two or three tones within it, which is why they sit against patterned cloth more easily than a flat tape would. There is no repeat along the length.

We use Melange on the leading edge of wool or linen curtains, along the border of a Roman blind, and on the skirt seam of a loose cover where a little softness at the line suits the piece. It is also good on the edge of a fabric-covered lampshade. Ottanio against a natural linen is the pairing we use when a scheme needs one point of colour. Order a sample to see it in your own light.

Because there is wool in it, Melange will ease round a gentle curve without a mitre, so work it slowly and press as you go rather than pulling it into shape. On a square corner, fold a true mitre and slip-stitch through the fold. We hand-sew rather than glue, since adhesive on a wool blend leaves a hard patch that never softens. Allow 10 per cent over the measured run for corners, returns and end turnings, and steam the braid lightly before it goes on.

• Composition: 52% LI 41% WO 7% PL
• Sold by: the half metre
• Suitable for: Curtain edges, Roman blinds, loose covers, lampshades
• Care: Dry clean recommended
• Collection: Accent II, Mark Alexander
• Colourways: 7 (Boulder, Chestnut, Ottanio, Moccasin, Plaster, Silverbirch, Natural)