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The Suketchi II Collection

THE SUKETCHI II COLLECTION

Suketchi II is a collection of six wallpaper and fabric designs, capturing the movement of nature through fluid washes of ink and expressive, layered colour. Explore the full range of wallpapers, fabrics and the lookbook.

“If there were no cherry blossoms in this world, how much more tranquil our hearts would be in spring.”
Ariwara no Narihira, 10th-century poet

Beautifully soft, nuanced, and understated shades bring a new depth to our much-loved Suketchi Collection, first released in 2017. This new, more refined palette echoes the washy paper-like quality of the original artwork, each colourway chosen to enhance the collection’s sense of stillness or quiet strength.

Suketchi (meaning ‘sketches’ in Japanese) is a collection of wallpaper and fabrics that captures the fleeting moods of nature through expressive washes of colour and simple motifs. Originally inspired by Ukiyo-e (‘pictures of the floating world’) - a 17th-century Japanese printing and painting movement - each design evokes a moment in nature: stormy seas, drifting clouds, starlit skies. The result is a series of quietly dramatic designs, full of movement, calm, and atmosphere.

Every design was painted as a fluid wash of ink, applied in one sweep. The motifs—clouds, cranes, blossoms, or rain—are left unpainted, ‘cut’ from the colour in the tradition of woodblock printing. Watch the full behind-the-scenes video of our Suketchi II Collection Colour Refresh Story on YouTube.

Gentle patterns in the collection include HALCYON, where soft, washed-out skies and curling clouds drift through the early morning light or the golden glow of an evening. SUNLIT captures the warmth and tranquillity of sunlight filtering through a canopy of cherry blossoms, and STARLIT reveals a night sky scattered with stars and three white cranes silhouetted in moonlight - symbols of hope and good fortune.

Dynamic patterns in the collection carry a bold, expressive energy. CLOUDBURST evokes the rhythm of rain streaking down a windowpane, its broken stripes capturing both the intensity and release of a sudden downpour. WINDSWEPT is all movement and momentum—slashing brushstrokes that channel the rush of wind through open fields. TEMPEST, with its sweeping waves and watery textures, captures the power and unpredictability of the sea, a design that says ‘hold strong and lean into the storm’.

With this refresh, we’ve also introduced half-scale versions of all six patterns on our printed linen. The smaller repeat offers a more intimate scale for soft furnishings—ideal for cushions, lampshades, and smaller upholstered pieces—without losing the impact of the original artwork. The wallpapers, meanwhile, retain their large-scale format, preserving the expansive, immersive quality that defines them.

SUNLIT

SUNLIT is inspired by the dreamy sensation of sunlight viewed through blossoms. It is optimistic and references the temporal beauty of nature.

Painted in reverse, the background sky is inked in, while the blossoms and branches remain the untouched paper beneath. This gives the pattern a soft, layered feel, like dappled light across a surface. The finished design was painted by hand, following a composition finessed using an iPad and photoshop.

Explore SUNLIT as wallpaper and fabric.

STARLIT

STARLIT draws our gaze away from the difficulties of life to the greater world around us. The crane is a potent symbol of happiness, good fortune and healing in Asia and particularly in Japan.

The idea was first sketched in charcoal and then painted by hand, using ink on paper to achieve a sweeping wash of colour - the stars left unpainted as the white of the paper. The silhouetted cranes were carefully composed to create a harmonious repeat, the result is a design that flows like a magical dreamscape unfolding across the wall.

Explore STARLIT as wallpaper and fabric.

CLOUDBURST

CLOUDBURST is a sudden and heavy downpour. There are times when a drenching feels immediately satisfying. Cloudburst is a simple, textural layered wash of colour.

This pattern was created from experimental mark-making using a brush, ink, and heavyweight cotton rag paper. Adam worked with three carefully balanced ink mixtures - one deep and concentrated, one light and watery, and one in between. This allowed for a range of painterly effects: decisive, sharp-edged strokes and delicate, watery blurs that bleed and soften into the fibres of the paper.

Explore CLOUDBURST as wallpaper and fabric.

WINDSWEPT

WINDSWEPT is the rush of wind clearing the air and sweeping through the glade. Windswept is a pattern of freshness and energy. A pattern depicting ebb and flow is a Japanese symbol for tactical strength and ability.

The pattern began as a series of expressive marks painted with ink. There was no fixed plan - just long, fluid brushstrokes moving across paper. As the marks layered and overlapped, the feeling of wind began to emerge. The final composition was refined into a repeating pattern, but its energy comes from that initial, instinctive way of working.

Explore WINDSWEPT as wallpaper and fabric.

TEMPEST

TEMPEST is a commotion, a tumult, a storm at sea. Inspired by the iconic woodblock print by Katsushika Hokusai, Tempest is a swaggering dynamic pattern that embraces the rush of letting go, giving in to the storm.

Tempest was carefully constructed and mapped out using drawings and digital tools, thinking about the flow and placement of each wave. The pattern was then hand-painted using a negative-space technique, where the ink fills in around the wave shapes. This gives it a feeling of contrast, much like woodblock prints. Layers of ink were used to build tone - letting water and pigment move across the page with a natural, uncontrolled softness.

Explore TEMPEST as wallpaper and fabric.

HALCYON

HALCYON is the calmness and quiet of a bright sunny day. The gentle sky following a storm. Clouds are a symbol of elegance in Japanese culture and often depicted with beautiful swirly curls.

Halcyon began, as many of our patterns do, with drawing - soft, simple cloud shapes sketched by hand, their curves refined through collage and digital play. The final composition was created in layers, then painted using a lightbox, working around the cloud forms rather than filling them in. This negative-space technique allows the colour to pool and blur, creating a dappled, airy sky. The result is a design that feels as if it's barely there - floating, effortless, serene.

Explore HALCYON as wallpaper and fabric.

WATCH THE COLLECTION STORY

DISCOVER SUKETCHI II

Explore the full Suketchi II collection - a study in hand-drawn pattern, refined colour, and materiality. View all designs, colourways, and more imagery in our digital lookbook.

DOWNLOAD LOOKBOOK