Swatches is the ultimate user-friendly guide to anyone looking for design inspiration, taking a less historical but no less expansive view of the world of fabric than Abrams' enormously successful Textile Designs: 200 Years of European and American Patterns. Organized by pattern type, with a particular eye toward colour combinations, Swatches contains more than 400 fabric swatches, each showing a full pattern repeat. The book's intent is to focus more on useable colour and pattern concepts that are relevant across a broad spectrum of purposes, from home decor to fashion to craft, to all manner of personal and professional design. Brief, but informative texts introduce each section, discussing the origins of the patterns and their typical use. Both pattern name and fabric type identifies each swatch.