The appearance of your furniture depends primarily on which fabric you choose to upholster it. That’s why furniture fabrics should not only be attractive in appearance, but also practical, not subject to mechanical attacks, and should not discolor in sunlight. Our shop offers a large selection of furniture fabrics. This brief overview is designed to help you make the right choice.
Jacquard is one of the most common upholstery materials, a mixture of cotton and synthetic fabric. Most often, jacquard fabrics have highly detailed relief patterns. Jacquard is quite easy to clean: you can only use soap and water, for dust you can use a vacuum cleaner. Jacquard furniture can last for years and cost much.
Thermal jacquard is one of the modern types of jacquard fabric. It differs by being painted by thermal prints of bright and saturated colors. Due to the paint penetrating deep into the fibers, the quality of colors stays high for a long time. Thermal jacquard possesses the same characteristics as its classic type, such as density, high resistance and long lasting quality.
Scotchgard is a relative fabric type to jacquard. It is treated with a special water-repellent liquid. This mean of treatment protects the fabric, repels moisture, provides additional protection against burnout, dirt and dust, due to which it is called one of the most practical materials.
Tapestry is a textile made of thick fibers, usually cotton, sometimes with a small amount of synthetic materials. Threads are interwoven very tightly. Additionally, the tapestry is characterized by a complex pattern, sometimes picturesque. The tapestry has an expensive appearance, but since the threads are natural, it fades over time. Moreover, the complex picture creates an eye strain, so the tapestry is better to use not for sofas, but for small space furniture, for example, couches or poufs.
Velveteen is a type of fabric with raised lines of different widths, fully consisting of cotton or with synthetic materials. Velveteen has a soft structure and looks appealing due to shimmering effect which occurs by multiple raised lines. It is easy to clean, but it is also fragile and doesn’t last long, so in case of permanent use, velveteen upholstery should be frequently renovated.
Chenille is a textile woven in a special way. First, the threads are twisted, after which they are woven broadside and lengthwise, that makes the fabric more dense. It contains both natural and synthetic yarns, one of which is artificial and looks wooly, so chenille, unlike tapestry, is fleecy, although it is of same density and much cheaper.
Velour is also a fleecy fabric, which consists of warp and pile and is formed by interlacing several threads. The texture of velour depends on the density of this interweaving: it can be either pretty dense or super soft. The material looks aesthetically appealing, but it can be easily damaged, so it is not recommended to use it if you have children or pets.
Flock fabric is a type of velour, but it contains more polyester in its structure. Synthetic fibers are added to the adhesive layer of the fabric warp under electrostatics, so they get a vertical position. Flock is a very useful fabric. It is resistant to moisture, durable in use, easy to clean and is able to repel dirt, so you don’t have to worry about it if you have children and pets.
Microfiber is also called faux suede fabric. A thin layer of Teflon is put on the fabric’s surface, which helps to repel dust, so it is very easy to take care of. Mind that you shouldn’t use wet cleaning, so double think to use this fabric if you have pets.
Artificial leather is a material, consisting of natural or synthetic fibers, which is coated with an imitation leather finish. It is distinguished by its ability to repel water and dirt, and it is easy to take care of, since you can clean it with soap. It repels odors, so you can use it for kitchen furniture. However, artificial leather is quite sticky, and also it is not very resistant to mechanical damage as scratch marks appear easily.
Genuine leather is a luxury material. Pigskin is commonly used for furniture production. It can be aniline, which is soft and very attractive. Though, due to such processing method, the material becomes very demanding, it is better to avoid moisture and mechanical damages. Semi-aniline processing makes the leather tougher, stronger, but less esthetic in appearance.
Each of the presented materials has their pros and cons, and your choice should depend on the place of the upholstered furniture and demanding conditions of use. Search and choose Italian furniture fabrics in our shop!