FARROW & BALL: WALLS OF DISTINCTION AND BEAUTY

Ask an interior designer or a person interested in interiors to name a paint manufacturer. The answer is very likely to be

Farrow & Ball. Their paints have been made according to the same tradition for the past seven decades, but are more up-to-date than ever. Small-scale production and natural and environmentally friendly ingredients are factors that appeal to the discerning consumers of today.

Text: Henrik Lindén

Opposite page:

Wallpaper: 5-Over Stripe BP 634 is priced €80 per 10 m roll.

This page:

Wall: Cook’s Blue® No.237 Estate Emulsion.

Wallpaper: Vermicelli BP 1513 is priced €110 per 10 m roll.

With a unique colour palette and unsurpassed depth, Farrow & Ball have gained a worldwide reputation for their high-quality paints and wallpapers. The paint range comprises 132 carefully selected colours, most of which originate in historic settings, chosen by the leading interior designers of times gone by. The number of colours may sound like a limitation, but the collection contains paints that are just as well suited to the walls of an 18th century manor as to a minimalist New York loft. To further enhance feelings and create the right atmosphere, there are a dozen finishes to choose from. Farrow & BallÕ s best-known product is the extremely matt and deep emulsion known as Estate Emulsion.

Hardly anything has changed since the company made its first batch of paint. The paint is made using traditional methods and traditional ingredients, without any synthetic pigments and binders.

In comparison with many standard paints, more pigment is added and less filler is used. The result is a quality paint with unique colour characteristics. Rigid quality control is an important part of the chain of production and ensures that the paint in the tin matches the sample card. All the paints are waterbased and environmentally friendly.

The opening chapter in the history of Farrow & Ball was written in 1946 in the English county of Dorset, when the chemists John Farrow and Richard Ball established a small-scale paint factory. After a modest start, the reputation of the duoÕ s excellent paints spread, contributing to them winning contracts to supply paint to the Admiralty and the War Office.

SAFEGUARDING OLD TRADITIONS

For paint manufacturers, like many other industries, the post-war period brought modernisation and updated production techniques. But when many of them abandoned the traditional methods and ingre

dients, Farrow & Ball stuck to their original recipe Ð a process that was more complicated and demanded the best raw materials, but with a result that a faithful band of customers appreciated.

When interest in renovating and preserving older buildings grew in the early nineties, this re-ignited Farrow & Ball. A great need in the market was met with colours that were timeless and had historical attachments.

In the mid-nineties Farrow & Ball expanded their range to include a new, unique product Ð wallpapers are screen-printed with the companyÕ s own waterbased paints. The ground colour is applied with a brush, and patterns are applied in several layers, in some cases using block printing. The result is a wallpaper with a vibrant and elegant surface and one that is easy to clean. Today there are 34 different patterns to choose from and 900 colourways. A pure craft product made to order at the factory in Dorset by a small team of craftspeople.

In 1996 Farrow & Ball opened their first showroom in London, and the company has since established showrooms in such places as Paris, New York, Los Angeles and Milan. In these showrooms it is possible to explore inspiring settings and obtain advice on colours and finishes from professional colour consultants.

Today Farrow & Ball remains independent and continues to produce paints and wallpapers from the same little town in Dorset. Paints that create a sense of harmony and timelessness in all types of settings. Which is your favourite?

Paint: Babouche® No.223 Estate Emulsion Wallpaper: Melrose BP 1428 is priced €110 per 10m roll.

Wall: Down Pipe No.26 Estate Emulsion.

This page:

Floor: Slipper Satin® No.2004 Floor Paint Estate Emulsion is priced €65 for 2.5L and €109 for 5L. Floor Paint is priced €39 for 750ml, €99 for 2.5L and €169 for 5L.

Wallpaper: Melrose BP 1420 is priced €110 per 10m roll.

Photo: Mathias Martinsen / mfofo.se

Hello, Simon Davies and Tomas Cederlund, interior designers familiar from television and owners of the interior design store London W8 in Stockholm, Sweden. and Tomas Cederlund, from television and owners of the interior design store London W8 in Stockholm,

1. Why have you chosen to work with Farrow & Ball’s collection?

– The paints have fantastic depth and are of fantastic quality, the collection only contains 132 colours but still meets every need. In addition, they are water-based and completely ecofriendly.

2. Which colours someone likes is an extremely personal and subjective matter. How do you go about helping your customers to choose paints for their homes and workplaces?

– Everyone has a favourite colour, but rarely dares to use it. We put a lot of effort into persuading people to dare. It is also important that all the rooms in a home in some way harmonise and hang together, which we help the customer to achieve. At workplaces it’s a little different, because the colours have to appeal to far more people. But different colours create different moods and affect our senses differently. So people choose a colour depending on the type of workplace. Green, for example, is very calming and is therefore often used in prisons.

3. What characteristics should a good paint have?

– Environmentally friendly – Deep – Easy to work – It should be available in various finishes for different purposes in all colours.