You’ve always dreamed of having a China garden, but haven’t quite gotten around to fulfilling it. What with the budget requirements, researching of the perfect contractor and whatnot, the project itself seems bigger than the dream! Guess what? You can still have your dream garden, but not the type made for basking in the sun. Home Fabrics has an alternative solution for you…

It, too, is called the China Garden but the Home Fabrics version has to do with curtaining – a type of fabric made for sheilding windows. You see, this collection of fabrics is based on the French decorative theme Chinoiserie, a 17th Century European artistic style with Chinese influences. The China Garden range is characterised by fish and human imagery, and symmetrical, geometrical design – all techniques of the ancient Yangshao culture. The original immitations of Eastern art in Middle Ages Europe came in the form of Chinese porcelains ornately decoorated for the imperial court.

As trade with East Asia grew, so did general European interest in Chinese fashions. Eventually the enthusiasm for Chinese imagery spilled into almost every decorative art - gardens, furniture, wallpapers and textiles. And such interest remains today through companies, like Home Fabrics, that keep the tradition alive in the international world. Their China line features fabrics embellished with detailed motifs of exotic birds and flowers, scenery, pagodas and intricate lattices. The China Rose design features trailing floral and leaf motifs. There is also a great stripe fabric called Great Wall.

For more information on this range so full of history and beauty, visit the Home Fabrics website at www.homefabrics.co.za.