I love Velvet and I wanted to spice up my home with this amazing fabric so I needed up researching different Velvet fabrics for upholistery before buying right one.
Is Velvet fabric durable for upholstery? Velvet fabric has changed a lot over years and become really durable. Some can stand over 200000 rubs. You can find inovative materials witch are soft, low-maintenance needed and machine washable. It is definitely great and luxurious looking fabric to choose for upholstery.
When I dived in to research I saw Velvet name is used for different type of fabrics such as cotton, silk and synthetic fabrics. They all can be used for upholstery purpose but you need to be carefull about some key features. Read more!
Can we use Velvet fabric for upholstery?
Velvet fabric made for upholstery is a lot stiffer compared to apparel. They all have nice luster but are not as shiny as those we wear.
When searching for right peace of velvet fabric for your upholstery , you need to pay attention to feature called “velvet’s rub test”.
In US, this test us done using Wyzenbeek method. They use peace of heavy cotton canvas and repeatedly rub over desired fabric using mechanized arm. Each movement of this mechanical arm back and forth is called “double rub”.
For upholstery we need durable fabrics so anything under 15000 double rubs I wouldn’t buy. Everything above is considered great for residental usage.
Most of the fabric I saw had amazing ratings as hight as 200,000 – 250,000 double rubs.
Term “Velvet” means weaving fabric so yo can find all sorts of different styles available on the market. One of the my favorite fabrics on Amazon is with cow pattern. You can check it here.
More about different fabric types we will discuss in below su heading.
Velvet Fabric care
If we already have this fabric present in our home, we need to know what kind of Velvet material we have so we can clean it properly.
It is usualy written on the product tag or in the manual istructions received by company who sold you furniture present in your home.
Probably it is either Cotton, Linen or Wool type. Those are most popular in upholstery indrustry. Other are mostly used in fashion.
If you are unsure what kind of fabric you have, try to call store where you bought your furniture before you start to clean.
Care is important so its color stays bright and surface raised. You can clean it on regular basis with vacume cleaner with little help of a steamer. This way you will preserve fabric in original shape years after.
Visible usage is not bad!
Sometimes you will see a chair or sofa that has a visible age patina. This comes with years of usage, and it becomes a Hot pick among designers. You can always buy vintage velvet, but it is just not the same as if you find something that’s already old.
If we put usage a side, velvet is fabric to watch out little bit more than others such as spillage or stain accidents.
Velvet doesn’t like water
If spillage happens, on most velvet fabrics you should act quickly. Even inocent spill like water can make damage, if not acting on time.
When it happens:
- you need to remove watter or some other liquide with dry cloth. Try not tu rub it.
- Take hairdrier and dry rest of wet area.
- When it is dry, take brush and put velvet pile back in place
This doesn not mean all fabrics are the same. Some are easier to maintain just be aware reading care instructions before buying.
If stains happen
When removing stains we found best:
- mix lemon juice with baking soda
- Put 3 table spoons of baking soda and lemon juice in a bowl.
- Mix till foam appear.
- Remove foam from top and apply it gently to your stain.
- Leave everything for few hours like it is to dry.
- If stain is removed, take brush and put velvet pile back in place
There are natural stain removers on the market as well. I like FREY, who will do this job same or even better.
Different Velvet Types
Velvet can be found in form of different fabrics available such as
- Silk velvet – extremely soft fabric with very luxurious feel. 100% silk velvet can be really expensive and can cost up to several hundred dolar. In many cases they are blend with other fabrics such as Rayon to be more affordable. It is mostly used in fashion such as Evening dresses or wedding gowns.
- Viscose velvet / Rayon Velvet – I put those two together becouse they feel same way. Both are very lustrous type of fabrics. In term of quality and frape, they can be compared with silk. We can use it also mostly as Evening dresses or wedding gowns.
- Cotton velvet – it is soft but sturdy. If we compare it to other velvet types, it has less drape. You can find it in upholstery as well in wear such as jacket, trousers and some other occasion wear.
- Synthetic velvet – its drape is amazing, has no stretch ability and it is resistant to mold. Used mostly in making dresses.
- Stretch velvet – producers add elastane or lycra to any of mentioned Velvet fabric types to get stretch features. This fabric type is mostly used on women clothes to show their curves.
- Linen velvet – one of the most popular velvet type fabrics for upholistery. It soft on touch with vintage look. Very popular to use on curtains as well
- Wool velvet – most heavy and thickest velvet type of fabric. It is soft with very rich textures. We use it mostly in upholistery.
Velvet Example in Upholstery
As with modern technology velvet fabrics Got much more durable and easy to clean, we tend to find more and more different furniture items and other accessories in Velvet.
Fabric is very universal and works with most others fabrics great together. You can easily combine it but be carefull not to “kill” the room. Below are some velvet examples in for of upholstery.
Dining chairs
Velvet looks amazing in the dining room, especialy on dining chairs. They will look very luxurious.
Be carefull with small dining area and dark velvet colors. You can easily “overdone” design.
Curtains
Wool Velvet is great for curtains. You can also use cotton and Linen but wool. Will give you that vintage look. It is very thick and soft with great texture.
When trying to incorporate this amazing fabric in to your living room, keep in mind one thing: Velvet will naturally absorb natural light and also man – given as well.
If you are not carefull, some selections could become too overpowering if not chosen well.
Velvet curtains are great for bedrooms and living rooms with hight celing. My advice is to choose clean, simple solid color without any simbols printed on them.
Combining two velvet colors can look great!
Bedroom
I love big upholistered headboards. Don’t you? Velvet fabric in bedroom is becoming really popular.
Headboards of beds are getting bigger and bigger and in great demand. Lot of Times we costum made them to fit whole width of the room.
All colors can be beautiful keeping Velvet in mind but my suggestion would be to choose light or natural earth color headboard such as Grey, beige, White or Rose.
If you room Is very big you can play with navy blue and other strong colors.
TIP: Velvet goes well with coper or Black accessories.
Lounge chair
Lounge resting chair upholistered in Velvet fabric will bring to your living space feel of comfort, luxury, and softness.
As durable as it is, it will be perfect relaxing peace of furniture for you to enjoy many generation after. Great reading spot as well 🙂
Read more about how to combine different textures in single space.
Margonia Armchair Olive – My-furniture.com
Related Questions
Is Velvet Pet Friendly?
Velvet fabric doesn’t loose any threads, is highly durable and it is almost impossible to snag.
Becouse of short pile hight, your pets hair or dirt will stay above the fabric and can be easily removed with vacum cleaner or some cloth. Overall perfect fabric for pets. Choose Linen type.
Does velvet fade in sunlight?
Velvet will like most fabrics fade under sunlight. For those who don’t want this to happen, it shouldn’t exposed under sunlight.
But wait!…Velvet is known for its deep nap so its fading will create ombre effect getting multiple color tones on exposed peace of fabric. By my opinion It looks amazing.
