Not so subtle. These tileable wood patterns are very useful.
Source Elemis
The tile this is based on can be had by selecting the rectangle in Inkscape and using shift+alt+i
Source Firkin
A hint of orange color, and some crossed and embossed lines.
Source Adam Anlauf
Plywood Web Background background image for use in web design.
Source V. Hartikainen
He influenced us all. “Don’t be sad because it’s over. Smile because it happened.”
Source Atle Mo
Zero CC tileable dry grass texture, photographed and made by me. CC0
Source Sojan Janso
An emulated “transparent” background pattern, like that of all kinds of computer graphics software.
Source AdamStanislav
A seamless textured paper for backgrounds. Colored in pale orange hues.
Source V. Hartikainen
The tile this is based on can be had by selecting the rectangle in Inkscape and using shift+alt+i
Source Firkin
Zero CC tileable bark texture, photographed and made by me. CC0
Source Sojan Janso
Prismatic Triangular Background Design Mark II 5
Source GDJ
ZeroCC tileable beechwood wood texture, generated in Neo Texture Edit by me. CC0
Source Sojan Janso
A light background pattern with diagonal stripes. Here's a simple light striped background for you.
Source V. Hartikainen
If you don’t like cream and pixels, you’re in the wrong place.
Source Mizanur Rahman
From a drawing in 'Cowdray: the history of a great English House', Julia Roundell, 1884.
Source Firkin
A background formed from an image of an old tile on the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art website. To get the base tile, select the rectangle in Inkscape and use shift-alt-i.
Source Firkin
Zero CC tileable Laminate wood texture, photographed and made by me. CC0
Source Sojan Janso
More Japanese-inspired patterns, Gold Scales this time.
Source Josh Green
Seamless , tileable CC-0 texture. Created by my own, feel free to use wherever you want!
Source Linolafett
The rectangular tile this is based on can be had by selecting the rectangle in Inkscape and using shift+alt+i
Source Firkin
Here's a new paper-like background for free use on personal and commercial projects (this applies to all background patterns here).
Source V. Hartikainen
Submitted as a black pattern, I made it light and a few steps more subtle.
Source Andy
Made by distorting a simple pattern using the 'sin waves' plugin for Paint.net and vectorising in Vector Magic
Source Firkin