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Pimpernel by William Morris, 1876

William Morris Tile Pimpernel extended backsplash

The house might be made very beautiful with a touch of my art.
~William Morris telling his wife that he wanted to take Kelmscott House

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About Pimpernel at Kelmscott House

Pimpernel is available both as a backsplash and as a seamless tile.

Pimpernel Tiles

William Morris Tile Pimpernel, Kelmscott House

Pimpernel is seamless in both directions.

Size: Each tile ix 8x6 inches.

Designer: William Morris

Year: As early as 1876. (see history).

Each tile: $81.

Pimpernel Backsplash
(3 rows and 4 columns, 12 tiles)

Pimpernel is seamless in both directions. Each tile is 4.25 inches or 6 inches. The base repeat is four rows of three tiles each, but single rows and columns can be added to accommodate the size of your installation.

William Morris Tile Pimpernel backsplash, 12 tiles

Three rows, four columns, $980 (4.25 inch tiles)

Three rows, four columns, $1120 (6 inch tiles)

Extended Pimpernel Backsplash
(6 rows and 8 columns, 48 tiles)

William Morris Tile Pimpernel Extended backsplash

How to Order Tile

Pimpernel History

William Morris Tile Pimpernel, Kelmscott House Dining Room

Morris's most famous homes were in the English countryside, Red House in Bexleyheath, and Kelmscott Manor in Oxfordshire. Business brought him often to London and when in town, he made his home at the riverfront Kelmscott House, renamed after his beloved Kelmscott Manor. Kelmscott House was a terraced house built in the 1780s and originally called 'The Retreat'. Morris spent the last 18 years of his life at Kelmscott House for the most part.

How Pimpernel was Made

The Pimpernel design was, like hand or block printed, not machine printed.

From Morris and Co. information sheet while Morris was at Kelmscott House

Hand or Block-printed Papers and Machine-printed Papers.

MORRIS AND COMPANY are often asked "What is the advantage of hand-printed papers over those printed by machine?"

HAND-PRINTED PAPERS are produced very slowly, each block used being dipped into pigment and then firmly pressed on to the paper, giving a great body of colour. This process takes place with each separate colour, which is slowly dried before another is applied. The consequence is that in the finished paper there is a considerable mass of solid colour.

MACHINE-PRINTED PAPERS are produced at a great speed, all the colours being printed at one time and rapidly dried in a heated gallery. In consequence of the speed at which they are printed, there is merely a film of colour deposited on the surface of the paper.

FOR PERMANENT USE we strongly recommend the hand-printed paper.

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