Morris & Co. fabrics from Sanderson Design Group

William Morris (1834-1896) was a hugely influential cultural figure in Victorian Britain as a textile designer, poet, artist, novelist and socialist activist. During his lifetime he was best known for his poetry, but after his death he became better known for his designs. He was very prolific, leaving an archive of over 600 wallpaper and textile designs.

He started the business in 1861 as a decorative arts company with several partners and his designs soon became popular among Britain’s middle and upper classes and the business flourished, becoming renowned for its wallpapers and textiles. He took complete control in 1875, with the business then becoming Morris & Co. By 1880 the company had become a household name and enjoyed increasing numbers of commissions from the aristocracy, including work at St James’ Palace, and from successful Victorian industrialists.

Interestingly, Arthur Sanderson & Sons was founded just a year earlier in 1860, beginning life as an importer of French wallpapers to London. Sanderson acquired Morris & Co. in 1940, forming the basis for what is now the Sanderson Design Group.

The Morris & Co. archive is a treasure trove that inspires all the current Morris wallpapers and fabrics and they are still hugely popular under the careful stewardship of the Sanderson Design Group, with clever recreations of the classic designs and some inventive twists such as the inspired recent re-colouring of classic designs in conjunction with designer Ben Pentreath.

The photo shows recent use of Morris & Co. fabrics for interlined Curtains and Roman Blinds. The three fabrics are: Pure Marigold Print Lightish Grey 226483, Pink & Rose Cowslip/Fennel 222530 and Pink & Rose Eggshell/Rose 222532.

The Pink & Rose Curtains were both for Edwardian properties, suiting the rooms and property perfectly, and the Pure Marigold was equally at home in a kitchen extension to a cottage style home. You can see all the fabrics at:

https://morrisandco.sandersondesigngroup.com/