Notes on: The versatility and quality of our wallpapers and fabrics
It's easy to miss some of the important elements within our products which can often get over-looked in favour of more exciting talk of our intricate designs, patterns and colours.
However, during the development process of our wallpapers, fabrics and made items, it was just as important for us to ensure all products were consistently to the highest standard, with a focus on sourcing close to home and sustainability, whilst supporting British Manufacturing - with all our products made in the UK. In addition to our responsible retailing approach, we ensured our products were fit for purpose in either a domestic or commercial interior setting, whilst always maintaining our House of Amitié signature style marbled designs.
With our 'style & substance' approach in mind, we wanted to talk through some more of the substance with you...
We chose to digitally print both our wallpapers and fabrics since recent advances in this form of printing have been ground-breaking and are transforming the way people work, consuming less energy and water than more traditional print methods. By working in this way there is also no waste (with everything made to order) and no harsh chemicals are required in the process.
Our wallpapers are digitally printed in the North of England at a print house who are known industry leaders for producing high quality, innovative wallcoverings as well as taking a sustainable responsible approach to manufacturing (our Wallpaper Print House is 0% to landfill manufacturer, with all waste recycled). All our wallpapers are made from either Eco-Non Woven or Mica Fibrous Non Woven substrates, responsibly sourced from Germany using wood pulp from FSC certified forests (all our wallpapers carry the FSC logo). The Eco Non-Woven base is made from entirely renewable sources and our beautiful tactile Mica Fibrous finish is partially made from recycled plastic bottles - both of which makes us very happy!
All our designs are printed with water-based, non-toxic inks which are environmentally safe and free from VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds). Digital printing also allows for a variety of creative grounds to be used - something that in time we hope to explore further, along with the option to provide customized colourways on selected designs (watch this space on that last one!)
Both our non-woven substrate bases allow for simple paste the wall application, making all our wallpapers user friendly and far easier to install than wallpapers of the past.
All of our wallpapers have a fire certification pass rating of B-s1-dO according to the Construction Products Regulation, which allows them to be hung anywhere in a commercial building. They also achieve the highest air quality result, which is VOC Emissions Class Label of A+.
When designing our collection of wallpapers we wanted to ensure our marbled designs looked as authentic and true to the original artwork as possible, so disguising the repeat is really important to us! We begin with specially designed hand marbled papers created by hand in the marbling workshop, which measure just 510mm x 750mm. The challenge then for our designer Nicky is to create a repeat that's barely noticeable in a larger scale format, ensuing that each and every design has a seamless repeat and looks easy on the eye in-situ on a wall.
Our fabrics are printed in the same vein, digitally translated onto a variety of 4 different fabric types, 100% linen, Linen Cotton Union (60%/40%), Cotton Velvet and wool by our two print houses in the North of England.
The print house that prints our linen, cotton union and velvet have 473 solar panels across two of their factories, with each panel generating 500 watts of power!
We are also soon to be adding a further cotton/linen mid weight quality which will be washable at 30 degrees and which will have many versatile end uses.
We've deliberately stayed away from fabrics predominately made from synthetic fibres to stay true to our 'craft with conscience' values as well as ensure our products are luxe and premium, fitting to our opulent marbled designs.
Our love for linen is not only its tactile and textural appearance but also due to it's eco credentials - made from flax grown from rainwater and very little fertiliser, with every part of the plant used in it's transformation into a fabric. With zero waste and eco friendly credentials, it not only sits with our natural and reduced waste principles, but all our linen yarns are sourced close to home from Europe. These are then woven in either the UK or Europe and are Oeko-Tex Standard 100 certified, meaning that they contain no harmful chemicals.
At House of Amitié we believe in using the best ‘ingredients’ coupled with ethical and sustainable practises whilst our materials remaining firmly fit for purpose. With linen being both breathable and hardwearing as well as having a stunning textural aspect to them, they are an ideal base fabric for our marbled designs!
Whilst our linens and cotton velvet are for residential use only, our wool fabrications comply to commercial standards and can be used in a multitude of interior settings.
We were especially keen to offer wool as its one of the oldest fabrics known to mankind and has so many natural benefits! Here are some of our favourites:
- It is extremely hard wearing and resilient
- 100% natural, its hypo-allergenic and breathable
- Wool is wrinkle resistant as well as resistant to mildew and mould
- It holds excellent eco and credentials, being 100% sustainable, renewable and biodegradable (essentially the very first 'circular fibre')
- It's a natural insulator
- Wool is recognized as the most flame resistant of all natural fibres
- Our designs use natural citric acid dyes to create our printed designs, ensuring sustainable ingredients are used throughout the making of our products.
With a desire to use this amazing natural ingredient in our range, we sourced a wonderful manufacturing partner in the North of the UK who spins, weaves and then prints our wools for us in Yorkshire. Coupled with our authentic design ethos, it just felt a heavenly combination to marry our marbling with wools that had a beautiful billiard cloth felted finish. Not only did this feel perfectly on-brand but also it's a bit of a first in the market place.
Our wools are ideal for task seating, soft seating, panels and curtains, performing to an Abrasion Resistance result of 50,000 to 100,000. This test is called a 'Martindale Abrasion Rub Test’ which measures the durability of a fabric and is internationally recognised. You can see specific results for each fabric in our website listings.
All of our current fabrics specify care instructions of dry-clean only to maintain them at their best and to enjoy your House of Amitié fabrics for years to come. To reduce the chance of sun damage and colour fade we recommend that our velvet fabrics are kept out of direct sunlight.
As with all materials to personalise your home or interior setting, we really encourage purchasing samples of our wallpapers and fabrics. We try to share as many photos and detail about all items in our range as possible, but nothing quite beats physically having samples to hand to fully appreciate the quality and craftmanship of our products.