Craftsmanship
Hand-Block Printing
Hand-block printing is one of the oldest and most exacting of the textile crafts. The process is entirely handmade. Each wooden block is carved, inked individually and applied by hand, repeat by repeat, across the length of the cloth. The most complex designs require over 100 individual block impressions per repeat; the Hollyhock in its aubergine and mint colourway uses 146. The resulting fabric carries something that no mechanical process can replicate: the faint irregularities, the depth of colour, the sense of a human hand at work.
Hand-block printing of this kind is no longer practised in the United Kingdom, not for want of tradition, but for want of apprentices. Our printing is carried out at a specialist mill in Thailand, where the craft has been carefully maintained and where the community of skilled printers has been nurtured with great dedication over generations.
History of Chintz
Chintz, from the Hindi chint meaning spotted or variegated cloth, arrived in England in the 17th century and captured the imagination of a nation. By the 18th and 19th centuries, it was woven into the fabric of English domestic life: on bed hangings and drawing room curtains, in country houses and town residences alike. The great flowering patterns, the rich grounds, the layered colours all spoke of a particular English confidence.
Jean Monro's chintz archive is drawn directly from this tradition. Many of the designs were discovered in the houses where Jean worked, found in attic rooms that had been closed, on walls that had not been seen for decades. They were brought back not as curiosities, but as living patterns: printed, coloured, and offered to a new generation of interior designers who understood their worth.
When chintz fell from fashion in the early 2000s, Jean Monro did not adapt or dilute. The collection was maintained in full. That commitment has since been entirely vindicated.
Our Unique Wallpapers
The Jean Monro wallpaper collection is printed to order in the United Kingdom, using processes that honour the character of the original archive designs. Each paper is made with the same consideration for colour, scale, and composition that governs every other element of the collection.
The Nicky Haslam wallpapers, though they appear simple in design, are among the most detailed in the collection. Each background has been individually blotched and drawn to resemble linen, so that fabric and wallpaper may be used together in the same interior with complete harmony.
Historic designs, brought back to life through some of the most exacting craft techniques still practiced today.
Trade Accounts
Jean Monro is available exclusively to the professional design trade. We welcome enquiries from interior designers and decorators who share our appreciation for the finest historic textiles. Please register your interest and we will review your application.