Bold and bright: traditional Indian craft with a modern twist is the hot homeware trend on rugs, furniture and tableware

Edward VII, when he was Prince of Wales, toured India for four months from October 1875, collecting gifts along the way.

These “souvenirs” were made using precious metals and sparkling gems, or involved brilliant embroidery, and many are now on display at Splendours of the Subcontinent: A Prince’s Tour of India 1875–76 at The Queen’s Gallery, Buckingham Palace.

Today, chic, contemporary Indian craft homeware, from small traders and big stores alike, enriches London homes.

Specialist trader Simon Goff at Floor Story (floorstory.co.uk) in east London has a flair for collaborations with UK designers of all kinds — and the resulting rugs with on-trend modern motifs are largely made in India.

Says Goff: “India has centuries of rug-making skills which have changed little really, though we have better systems now for dyeing and drying wool and silk.”

A particularly poetic partnership is with south Londoner Kangan Arora. She grew up in northern India but moved to London in 2005 to study textile design at Central Saint Martins, launching her own brand in 2011.

Now her vibrant, contemporary geometrics, perfected on a London print table, are scaled up into rugs made for Floor Story back in Arora’s homeland.

Sussex-based textile artist Ptolemy Mann — “I’m obsessed with colour” — is also doing rugs in India. Her exquisite tonal blends are reworked into Indian “gelims” with a dip-dyed weft to create a blurred effect. Visit ptolemymannrugs.com or rug-maker.com for more.

India has worked with Habitat since the store first furnished the Sixties. New for autumn is Quartet, a strikingly original rug designed by Martha Coates with four patterns stitched together into one patchwork with irregular edges, intricately made by two weavers at the same time.

BOLD AS BRASS

Indian metalware is also on trend. Traditionally, Moradabad city in northern India is famous for brassware, explains Habitat’s senior designer, Matthew Long. “But now they’re doing other metals such as iron and aluminium.”

He has created tables and lighting to highlight artisan handiwork, “mixing traditional craft with contemporary design, complete with random imperfections”.

A new Habitat opens in Westfield next month, with another new store in Brighton in October (habitat.co.uk).

Elegant and simple for life at home are pared-down pieces by Londoner Spandana Gopal for her label Tiipoi (tiipoi.com).

She harnesses Indian handcraft and semi-industrial techniques for covetable copper- and brass-lidded containers/trays, and glass jars with lids of sheesham wood.

FABULOUS FABRICS

Block-printed fabrics and papers in single colours are low key, versatile and the trademark of Molly Mahon. Indian artisans implement her charming designs (mollymahon.com).

Similarly understated are textiles by interior designer Jessica Pinotti and illustrator Stephen Cheetham, blockprints refined while working on a handspun and handwoven cotton fabric called khadi for cushions, pouches, bags and napkins (allthefruits.com).

Most big décor labels now do exquisitely embroidered fabrics for curtains, cushions and wall hangings, largely made in India — “simply the best at doing embroideries for interiors”, says Sue Hardie, head of Osborne & Little’s design studio.

“Our patterns are turned into a luxurious texture with ingenuity and an amazing diversity of stitch.”

Machines do a lot, but couching and finer crewelwork are done by hand. Fashion maestro Matthew Williamson has made two stunning new embroideries for Osborne & Little, one with dragonflies, the other a medley of Mediterranean flora.

Celebrity designer Nina Campbell (ninacampbellinteriors.com) brings back textile fragments for her archive from India and says techniques there are ever-evolving.

“They can block print and then embroider the same cloth, or screen-print and then pleat.”

Old Indian treasures sourced by Tracy Kitching are shipped to Opium in Chelsea (opiumshop.co.uk), where Prince Harry chose a gift for Meghan.

And for furnishing fabrics in the traditional patterns of old India, see Chandni Chowk (chandnichowk.co.uk). You’ll find hand-blocks, natural vegetable dyes, hand-spinning, embroidery and hand-weaving.

Splendours of the Subcontinent: A Prince’s Tour of India 1875–76, until October 14, The Queen’s Gallery, Buckingham Palace SW1. Tickets from royalcollection.org.uk; adults £12; concs and under-17s from £6; under-fives go free.