Mulberry Home | Sporting Life

Sporting Life is named for the pastimes of an English country weekend, and it carries them through in a loose, playful scatter across a viscose and linen ground, part of the same Long Weekend collection as Wild Things. The viscose gives the cloth a soft lustre and a fluid drape; the linen keeps it dry enough that the print sits crisply rather than sinking in. It is a print with a sense of humour, at home in a house that does not stand on ceremony.

The composition is 33 per cent linen and 67 per cent viscose. It is 138 centimetres wide, with a 42 centimetre vertical repeat and a 46 centimetre horizontal one, and it is recommended for curtains, loose and fixed upholstery and bedspreads. Two colourways: Antique sits on a warm, tea-coloured ground that flatters old furniture and brass; Teal is cooler and cleaner, better suited to a more contemporary room. Antique is the one we reach for first in a study or a snug.

We would hang it as curtains in a study, a den or a boy's bedroom, or use it for a loose cover on a small armchair. It also makes a cheerful bedspread with a plain wool blanket folded at the foot. Pair it with Wild Things from the same Long Weekend collection, or a plain linen. Sold by the half metre; order a sample to see it in your own light.

A making-up note: allow one 42 centimetre repeat per drop for matching, and ask your maker to centre a motif just below the heading of a curtain. Line and interline for the best hang, and keep it out of strong, direct sun, which will fade the viscose ground over time. Dry clean only; do not wash, bleach or iron.

• Composition: 33% linen, 67% viscose
• Width: 138 cm (54 in)
• Pattern repeat: 42 cm vertical, 46 cm horizontal
• Suitable for: Curtains, loose upholstery, fixed upholstery, bedspreads
• Care: Dry clean only; do not wash, bleach or iron
• Collection: Long Weekend, Mulberry Home
• Colourways: 2 (Antique, Teal)