There is a kind of handicraft being touted by many magazines as recession-savvy. It often involves pegs and hangers and bits of old fabric, and should not be given houseroom. And then there is patchwork, a practice so historically and anthropologically dense it is admired in the chicest of places.

In March, the Victoria & Albert Museum in London will open a major quilt show. Fashionistas will quiver with joy for the following 12 months each time they see something composed of 100 little pieces (V&A shows have that effect). Patchwork has, however, been fêted for a while now. Lisa Whatmough, of London company Squint (squintlimited.com), has been reviving old furniture through patchwork for years; first as a way to use minuscule fragments of precious antique fabric, then branching out into more exuberant colours.

Bokja, a Lebanese design company, has followed suit, rescuing vintage designs with local fabrics. The high price reflects the hours of labour involved, but patchwork needn’t be expensive to have class. If made in a subtle palette, it’s something even the most elegant homemaker will give house room to.

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