Liberty fabric is easy to spot. Dissecting this is less easy, but you know it when you see it. With colors that are joyous even when somber and designs that always sing, the quality of the weave is also a Liberty watermark. Most impressive, though, is the archive-looting: designs are fresh because of the way they reference the past.
Above: Liberty, in London's West End. The haberdashery department is found in this central light well, on the third floor. It is home to Liberty Art Fabrics, including Tana Lawn.
What is Tana Lawn? The name began to appear in the 1930s and "Tana" is named after Lake Tana in Sudan, the source of the cotton plant. "Lawn" refers to the quality of the weave, which is very fine. Photograph via Liberty.
Above: The Liberty florist is found at the Great Marlborough Street entrance. This side of the building is the full length of the ship HMS HIndustan, one of two ships which lent its timbers to the Tudor revival building. Photograph by Kendra Wilson.
Clockwise from top left: Kindle C Dufour; Bestseller Susanna B, originally designed by Emma Mawston, head designer of Liberty Art Fabrics and given a new colorway for this season; Rosa A, featuring a rock rose with scattered peppercorns. Tatum G is from the LIberty Classics collection: it was designed as a Tana Lawn fabric in 1955, a re-working of a design from the '30s. Tana Lawn fabric is £22 per meter.
"The thing underneath it all is: Liberty fabric is printed on Tana Lawn," says Emma. All that needs to be added to this fabric quality is "Our colors, our eyes, our palette."
Plus of course, Emma's creativity. She comes up with a theme, then sends her designers out on field trips. For "Botanicals" they went to Tresco in the Scilly Isles, known for its high density of flora. For the current collection, they took their sketchpads to Iceland. William Morris was the jumping-off point and he was fond of Iceland. Emma's fine art approach is a lively mix of abstract ideas with commercial nous.
Above: Rich colors for the December display outdoors. A hint of what will be found on the third floor. Photograph by Kendra Wilson.
British TV audiences have been treated to an ongoing documentary about Liberty, mainly focusing on the Christmas Shop. Emma Mawston declared on television: "I was born to work at Liberty." While many members of staff share this loyalty, one can't help feeling, after talking to her, that Liberty was waiting for her to come along.
Above, from top left: Manuela, inspired by a Liberty scarf designed in the '70s (which drew on the '30s). Jack and Charlie B; Joyce B (in collaboration with a tattoo artist); Sweet Cherries, a collaboration with British chef Jamie Oliver. The design is made from stamping the marks of sliced cherries and star anise onto fabric.
You may wonder what all this has to do with William Morris, but his poem "Iceland First Seen" inspired Emma Mawston to explore the senses. So we have among these fabric samples: sound, scent, touch and taste but we'll leave it to you to guess which fabric was inspired by which sense.
Above: The rambling half-timbered landmark in London's West End.
If you love Liberty, you may love Fortnum's too: The Bees of Buckingham Palace.