Fabric Trends - A Visit to ADAC

I have written two times this last week about my recent visit to ADAC - Atlanta Decorative Arts Center. The occasion was an invitation-only event called "Inside Design" co-sponsored by The Hearst Design Group (Elle Decor, Veranda, and House Beautiful) and ADAC. I attended two showroom presentations given by fabric houses Schumacher link and Pierre Frey link. The sessions were very insightful.

Pierre Frey at ADAC

Schumacher is celebrating its 125th year anniversary and has a celebrated history including two White House projects (1902 and 1962). The Schumacher presentation gave us a good look at a recent collection based on 18th century documents in their collection.

Patterns (often rendered extra large and in vibrant colors) included:

• toiles
• tree of life
• flame stitch
• leopard
• trellis

The Pierre Frey presentation was conducted by Pierre Frey (junior) himself. The family-owned firm is coming out with its first book and he was making the rounds to highlight this launch as well as demonstrate the variability of their fabric line. It is definitely not restricted to a French look - formal or country.  He indicated that over 70% of their fabrics are still made in France.

Both presentations reminded me of why I love fabrics and particularly well designed patterned fabrics. I will keep using patterns on some of my pieces and hope that they will appeal to the "fashion forward" and "bolder" decorator/homeowners looking for something vibrant to add to the mix. These presentations definitely demonstrated that the trend continues to be timeless!