Since 1989 we have been developing Venetian Flatweave and our experimentation in colour, pattern and texture remains unceasing. All of our designs tell their own story, and it is the story of Sudbury we are going to explore, discovering how it has become one of most loved designs and gone on to inspire our iconic Flaxman design.

A popular and timeless design, Sudbury was first introduced in 1994 and quickly became an unmistakable Roger Oates signature stripe. This classic design features a bold repeating pattern, using a combination of a rib and herringbone weave that creates both strong defined and softer textural stripes. With a stylish and neutral background elevating striking earthy-red tones, Sudbury Brick (pictured above) remains a much sought after design in our collection today.

Sudbury is not just an iconic design, it is a design that has been hugely inspiring and influential to us over the years. Unsurprisingly, we revisit it time and time again.

Sudbury’s pattern has inspired new designs, structural elements have gone on to be a key influence in the design and creation of Flaxman, introduced in 2014. Described as Sudbury’s contemporary cousin, Flaxman takes the prominent multi-stripe pattern as a bold border, an evolution that came early within the design process. This contrasting striped border frames the design and sits over an elegant repeating herringbone ground, separated by delicate pinstripes. Suitable for all styles of home, Flaxman can be coordinated with Fulham, a paired back elegant repeating herringbone ground.

The Flaxman with its borders, is perfect for stairs & hallways, leading the eye with their bold linear guiding stripes.

A Roger Oates classic, Flaxman is perfectly balanced by its soft, textured herringbone body, making it one of our most popular designs. Available in Lichen, Pewter, Quartz, Ruby, and Stone – Flaxman is available in multiple widths of 60cm, 70cm and 85cm – perfect for narrow hallways and generously proportioned staircases.

Due to the design’s popularity we re-imagined Sudbury, using the natural, undyed yarn of our eco-friendly range ‘The Shetland Collection’ – which is a capsule collection of our most iconic designs. Sudbury Shetland Light Grey and Moorit are woven using a limited palette of six natural shades of Shetland Wool, creating the perfect natural tones in our timeless Sudbury stripe.

Following on from their success, five new colourways were released as part of our New Classics collection in partnership with the Woolkeepers. Using 100% traceable British wool, the collection paves a new way championing traceability, sustainability and offers a fairer way using a united supply chain. Lichen, Maple, Birch, Dark Stone and Marine now join the Sudbury offering.