The Iconic Scalamandré Zebra

Every Fabric Has A Story

The Scalamandre zebra is a pattern that has quite the story to tell. Earlier this month I attended Design Boston 2011 at the Boston Design Center. Between all the inspiring speakers, I was snapping pictures left and right. All the showrooms had the best of the best displayed.

Vignette® in the Scalamandré showroom featuring the Scalamandre zebra at the Boston Design Center

The Scalamandré showroom caught my attention with this bold art deco wall-covering of zebras and arrows.  I love the playfulness of the motif and the tension the color combinations bring.  Not to mention, zebras are my daughter’s favorite animal. (I brought her home a mouse pad with this pattern on it that was in my goodie bag). Yes, even designers get goodie bags when they go to design parties!

Zebras and Arrows dance across this Scalamandré umbrella

Scalamandre Zebra History

Researching the design for this blog post has taken most of this snowy New England afternoon.  What a story this is!

The wallcovering was originally designed by Flora Scalamandré in the 1940’s for Gino’s Restaurant in New York City.  A kitchen fire destroyed the wall-covering in the 1980’s forcing a re-release of the classic design.  In a haste to reopen the restaurant, the new wall-covering was put up despite one tiny flaw.  One of the printing screens left out a stripe on the baby zebras back side, making it look like its pants were falling down!

The New York establishment became an American tradition frequented by celebrities.  The tradition ended in the closing of the restaurant in 2010 but the iconic zebra lives on.

Now don’t zoom in on these pictures looking for the missing stripe.  The pattern was reproduced again in 2007 with the missing stripe back in the proper place. There’s a little controversy over leaving the mishap in the pattern or correcting it.  What do you think?

Scalamandré has continued the popularity of their iconic zebra pattern. The Scalamandre zebra is available in wallcovering, fabric, umbrellas, tote bags and even mouse pads.

Would you like to have some zebra fun in your home?  How fun would this paper be for a powder room, one wall of a child’s playroom or a few pillows for the sofa?

Contact me today to begin transforming your house into a home you love to live in.