Fabric Texture Backgrounds

What is in this collection

Lace comes in two looks: fine ivory floral lace over blush, and bold black corded lace over champagne satin. Natural weaves include oatmeal linen, crumpled dusty blue washed linen, coarse jute burlap and cream cotton canvas. Checks and plaids include a red royal tartan, a green and navy Black Watch tartan, red and black buffalo check flannel and black and white buffalo check. Cosy textures include chunky cream cable knit, burgundy rib knit, herringbone tweed, mustard corduroy and cognac leather, and denim comes as indigo twill or faded stonewash. Prints and dyes add pastel tie-dye, rainbow tie-dye, indigo shibori, cream chintz with cabbage roses and a blush ditsy floral. Draped fabrics complete the set: white voile, blush chiffon, sage linen, lavender organza, a billowing cream gauze and burgundy and antique gold damask.

Choosing a fabric by occasion

A fabric background sets the mood before anything else is on the page. Lace and voile read as bridal, so use them for weddings, bridal showers and christenings. Burlap and buffalo check suit barn weddings, harvest parties and cabin Christmas cards, and the red royal tartan is the most festive plaid background. Denim and leather fit western parties, country concerts and denim-and-diamonds nights; tweed and corduroy suit vintage and seventies themes. For shine, the satin, silk and velvet backgrounds are the sister collection. For flowers, see floral backgrounds.

Tips for using these backgrounds

• Use the quiet weaves under busy layouts. Cream cotton canvas, oatmeal linen and the ditsy floral are low in contrast, so photos and small lettering stay readable. Bold patterns like buffalo check and tartan look best with fewer, larger photos on solid panels.
• Mind the pattern scale when you crop. A narrow 2 x 6 strip shows only a few squares of a buffalo check, so for strips the fine weaves (linen, denim, tweed) keep their look best. Save the bold checks and the chintz for 4 x 6 prints and full-frame portraits.
• Match the light in full-frame portraits. The lace over blush, burlap, red tartan, cable knit and leather are lit warm from the left, and the black lace, burgundy knit, corduroy and dusty blue linen from the right. Light a cut-out subject from the same side.

For smooth drapes rather than weaves, see satin and silk backgrounds.