The new Morningside collection of fabric and coordinating wallpaper designed by textile designer and artist Kristen Leigh, has been released by Stout Textiles, within its The Art of Color line. The collection, two years in the making, features scalloped, floral, and soft geometric designs in colorways such as harbor, lilac, denim, and spring – patterns and hues intended to evoke a sense of joy and lightness completely without stuffiness.
The Morningside collection, named after a street in Steen’s close-knit neighborhood in Houston, began life as watercolors on paper. “I designed with colors that are calming to me, colors that I could live with day in and day out, relax by in the evenings, hues that evoke a sense of joy,” says Kristen Leigh Steen. “For me, that’s a lot of blue tones, greens, and some neutrals as well.”
Steen began her work as a designer when she took a break from her job as an elementary school teacher to stay home with her two children in 2015. A self-taught watercolor artist, Steen spends hours each day working on ideas with her paints, sketching in her notebook, and drawing inspiration from the homes around her, her family, and her travels. She admires homes that are beautiful but lived-in and her work often injects a sense of fun into traditional symbols and motifs.
The new collection is as functional as it is lovely. “As we photographed the finished collection with Kristen, the versatility became apparent as our imaginings took us to different places and homes where we could envision the designs being used,” says John Greenawalt, Stout Textiles’ vice president of operations. “For me, that was a cozy New England living room, while Kristen saw them in a southern breakfast nook or daughter’s room.”
The Morningside collection of fabrics is made of linen-cotton blends and the wallpaper is digitally printed paper sold by a 9-yard double roll. Both the fabric and wall paper are made in the United States.
Founded in 1927, Stout Textiles is a fabric, wallpaper and drapery hardware brand servicing the interior design industry. Based in Colmar, Pennsylvania, Stout is one of the American interior design industry’s oldest family-owned companies, now operating under the fourth generation of leadership.
For more information, visit stouttextiles.com.