As a child, Sondra Borrie spent hours watching her aunt, New York abstract expressionist painter Margaret Milliken (above), apply oils to canvas. “I was just mesmerized by her work,” Borrie recalls. But her admiration didn’t stop with her aunt. “Being around her opened my eyes to abstract art and contemporary design,” says the former occupational therapist who, after struggling to find the right retro fabrics for her own design projects, launched Contemporary Cloth.com, a Cleveland-based website, in 2001. The site reflects Borrie’s love for mid-century-modern textiles and features a selection of striking but affordable fabrics for upholstered pieces—a welcome source now that the designs of the 1950s and ’60s have taken off, with the soaring prices to prove it.
When visiting Contemporary Cloth, head for the Interior Design Textiles section, where you can choose from an assortment of medium- to heavy-weight retro fabrics. For help with selecting patterns and colors, click on Continue Shopping after fabrics have been placed in your cart and go to the Interactive Design Wall, a handy tool for mixing and matching digital swatches. When done, you can feel virtuous about virtually shopping here: Borrie donates 1 percent of her profits to a local homeless shelter. (via Elements of Living)