Mark Alexander | Tissage

Tissage is a flat woven braid in linen and wool, made to finish an edge rather than to decorate one. The weave is close and slightly ribbed, with the wool giving it a soft matt surface and the linen keeping it straight and stable along its length. There is no cord, no fringe and no shine to it. The whole point is a clean band of texture that sits against a plain cloth and reads as part of the same piece of work.

The composition is 66% LI linen and 34% WO wool, and it is supplied by the half metre. It comes in one colourway, Plaster, a soft off-white with a faintly warm cast that sits between cream and pale stone. With a single shade in the range, the question is what it goes against rather than which to choose: it holds its own on an undyed linen and reads as a quiet contrast on a mid-tone ground.

We use Tissage as a leading-edge trim on curtains, set in twenty or thirty millimetres from the edge so it shows against the fabric rather than disappearing into the fold. It also works run around a Roman blind, along the top and bottom of a cushion, or as a border on a loose cover to pick out the shape of the frame. Order a sample to see it in your own light.

Measure your run first and add generously for returns, corners and a finished end at each termination. On curtains and blinds a flat braid should be hand-sewn along both edges with a matching thread; glue is quicker but it stiffens the braid and shows through a fine linen. At corners, mitre the braid for a square finish, or ease it round a curve with small tacking stitches. Turn every raw end under before the final stitch.

• Composition: 66% LI linen, 34% WO wool
• Sold by: The half metre
• Suitable for: Curtain leading edges, blinds, cushions, loose covers
• Care: Dry clean recommended
• Collection: Accent II, Mark Alexander
• Colourways: 1 (Plaster)