Susan Deliss chooses her favourite wallpapers
We've long admired interior designer and textile dealer Susan Deliss for her ability to combine strong colours and patterns without overwhelming a room. Wallpaper usually features prominently in her schemes, harmoniously co-existing with patterned fabrics and warm colours. As she prepares to launch her first wallpaper design later this year – a natural progression from her fabric collection – we asked her for her favourite patterns, and what she looks for when choosing papers for her projects.
"Quality of drawing is important to me," says Susan, who trained in art history and is married to Max Deliss, a restorer of Old Masters. "I have a keen eye for well-drawn lines and forms. Quality of print is also key; now that people's likes and dislikes are so driven by the internet, what you actually see when you get a sample can be quite surprising, either in a good or a bad way. The other thing to consider is whether you can live with a pattern; often very strong, hard patterns look great on Instagram, but you wouldn't necessarily want to live with it, you may need something gentler."
When it comes to layering wallpapers with other fabrics and colours, Susan recommends looking for "patterns that won’t necessarily be the dominant pattern in a room. The wallpaper can’t be the only personality there. Look for something that has the same depth of colour as the other elements in the room, but perhaps on a different scale." For her own wallpaper design, based on an embroidered fabric, Susan has used quite a large scale, but very delicate colours. "I'm bringing folk pattern into the English country drawing room," she explains, "it's the kind of hybrid design I'm often drawn to create."
1/12Susan's own first wallpaper collection, 'Maribor', was inspired by a combination of early 20th century embroideries and a group of antique weaves in Susan’s collection. Hand block-printed onto a hand-painted base, the wallpaper comes in four beautiful colourways.
Elsa Young2/12"Common Room are such a nice company, so lovely to work with, and their patterns are so distinctive." Susan used 'Lioness & Palms', a design by Charles Voysey, in the hallway of this Edinburgh flat, and also used the darker colourway in the loo.
3/12Also by Common Room, Susan used 'Dressing & Undressing' in the guest bathroom at Jeremy Langmead's house in Suffolk. 'It's quite quirky with a sort of English bohemian atmosphere; it's a bit louche, a bit naughty, and that's what I wanted for an arty house belonging to owners in media."
4/12"I love some of Soane's less well-known patterns," says Susan. "'Seraphic Star' is tiny and very pretty, and I'd also like to use 'Scrolling Acanthus'."
Owen Gale5/12In a guest bedroom at Jeremy Langmead's house, Susan has used Celia Birtwell's 'Beasties' pattern. "I love the history behind her brand, going back to designing clothes with Ossie Clark in the 1960s. And 'Beasties' is such a pretty, charming print.
6/12"'Nasturtiums' by Lake August is such a pretty pattern, and they are so nice to work with," says Susan.
7/12"It would need the right project, but I'd love to use one of Zuber's grand scenic papers, like 'Eldorado'. I love the history of the brand, stretching back to the 18th century in the same headquarters at Rixheim. They bring such richness and depth to decoration, and I'm also a fan of the extraordinary names they give to their paint colours."
Owen Gale8/12The guest bedrooms at Jeremy Langmead's house are well-supplied with beautiful papers; another of Susan's favourite brand's is Nicholas Herbert, whose 'Ashdown' pattern features here. "They're a small company doing lovely things," says Susan. "The colours and beautiful and very useable in real interiors. The 'Donatello' pattern is another favourite."
9/12"You can't go wrong with William Morris in a lot of environments," says Susan. "It is traditional but it has such a contemporary resonance. I'd go for 'Willow Bough' or 'Brer Rabbit' (pictured in church red/biscuit)."
Owen Gale10/12"Hugh Dunford Wood grew up on the Charleston estate, and makes quirky, original wallpaper." Here Susan has used a custom hand-block-printed paper by Hugh in the sitting room at Jeremy Langmead's house.
11/12"Nina Campbell does a couple of patterns I really love: 'Pomegranate Trail', which I used on a project in the US, and 'Marguerite.'
12/12"Ottoline Devries is doing some really fantastic things now. I'd like to combine a couple of her papers, like this 'Chintz Caroline' in green with her 'Tuscan Stripes', also in green."
