This week, we met one of our favorite textile designers, John Robshaw. John’s fabric’s are made in India using traditional hand-blocking techniques. These exquisite textiles undergo a complicated process of dyeing, printing, weaving, stitching, and worn piqueing (aka distressing) to create their one of a kind appearance. His bed linens and pillows have been featured in magazines like House Beautiful, Elle Decor, Lucky, and In Style to name a few.Below, Lauren, John, and me in his beautiful showroom in Midtown, Manhattan. The tall windows surrounding the space let in so much great natural light. John travels to India several times each year to oversee the production of his textiles and to experiment with new dyeing and printing techniques alongside local artisans. The technique of hand-blocking used to create his prints come from an ancient technique dating back centuries.A close-up of some of John’s blankets and duvet covers.
One of the wood blocks used to print the designs on to the fabric. Aren’t the details amazing? John describes the blocking technique as such: “It’s so simple and natural. You touch a woodblock to wet clay and then to the fabric. After the clay dries, you dip the cloth into the indigo vat and the clay stays on. One dip gives the fabric a sky-blue color, two dips and it deepens to cobalt, three dips and its a saturated midnight blue. Then the fabric is laid out to dry in the sun and later the clay is washed off. The dyer says the indigo vats are like a mistress because they need constant attention. I was completely fascinated by the dyeing and printing processes, as well as how the finished product is used. Textiles become intimate companions in daily life, whether as a pillow, bed cover or sarong.”
A wall of textiles in the entryway of the showroom. John’s textiles invoke a painterly aesthetic in the traditional method of block-printing by mixing up patterns and overlapping them in a more formally artistic way. The results are exquisite.
To set a table with his napkins and table linens? Oh yes.
John recently teamed up with Cisco Brothers furniture to put his fabrics on a series of chairs and sofas designed by John Derian. Looks like a wonderful collaboration to us. Below, a sampling of some of our favorite John Robshaw pillows. Clockwise from top left: this cheery, bright yellow fabric is from John’s vintage collection. Each pillow is one of a kind, made from vintage fabrics from India. The pillows on the upper right hand side are hand painted by an artist in India–we were taken by the soft colors and whimsy of them. Bottom row: a collection of pillows made from John’s textiles. The designer’s foray into fashion! We love these robes for both men and women. Apparently they’re coming out with a shorter, more feminine version soon too. To see more of John’s textile designs go to his website at johnrobshaw.com. – S & L