Shopping for furniture fabric shouldn’t feel like solving a puzzle, but with countless options flooding your online searches, it’s easy to reach that point. The question becomes, how do you know which fabric is the right choice?
Don’t worry; while there might be a lot of fabrics out there, most furniture uses just a handful of tried-and-true winners. These popular fabrics have stood the test of time for good reason.
Keep reading to learn more about the most common furniture fabrics, but first, let’s answer an important question many newcomers have…
What exactly is furniture fabric?
Furniture fabric, or upholstery fabric, is any material used to cover furniture. Simple, right? Well, let’s look at what sets it apart from regular fabric.
Firstly, furniture fabric is tougher than everyday fabric. Indeed, when it comes to durability, furniture fabric must pass certain standards of testing—at least 15,000 double rubs. Compare this to delicate-duty fabrics, which usually can withstand only 3,000 double rubs. A fabric rated at 15,000 double rubs represents the minimum standard for heavy-duty residential furniture.
Secondly, furniture fabric is designed to hold its shape while remaining flexible enough to wrap around furniture.
Thirdly, furniture fabrics are often treated for stain resistance and colorfastness, making them more suitable for high-traffic areas compared to regular fabrics.
Most common furniture fabric
Now, let’s take a look at the most common furniture fabrics.
Cotton
Cotton is one of the most popular furniture fabrics for good reason; it resists fading, wear, and pilling and is actually quite durable, depending on the weave. It’s also incredibly versatile.
From sleek modern chairs to cozy family sofas, cotton adapts to any style you’re after. While it might wrinkle a bit and isn’t completely stain-proof, its natural comfort and easy maintenance make it a common choice.
Linen
Linen has been a popular furniture fabric for generations. Not only is it beautiful, but it’s also remarkably tough and outperforms cotton in strength tests. Linen also has the ability to wick away moisture, which helps keep your furniture dry.
Wool
You might know wool best from your favorite sweater, but it’s also one of the most popular furniture fabrics. It’s very durable and stain-resistant, making it excellent for furniture in heavily used areas.
Despite its generally higher price tag, wool’s popularity hasn’t wavered. Its exceptional longevity and sustainability – being renewable, biodegradable, and minimally processed – keep it at the top of many buyers’ lists.
Leather
Leather remains a popular choice for luxury furniture thanks to its durability and graceful aging. Unlike other materials, it can actually improve with age.
Full-grain and top-grain leather offer the best quality and longevity, while bonded leather provides a more affordable option.
For those seeking lower-cost alternatives to leather, bicast and faux leather deliver the same look without the premium price tags, though they don’t match leather’s breathability or aging qualities.
Acrylic
Acrylic is a highly popular furniture fabric often used for outdoor cushions. Unlike traditional fabrics, acrylic is engineered so that the color runs all the way through each fiber. This might sound funny, but think of acrylic like a carrot, which has the color running all the way through, as opposed to, let’s say, a radish, which only has color on the outside but is whitish on the inside.
This is why high-quality acrylics, like Sunbrella, maintain their vibrant look even after years in the sun. Speaking of Sunbrella, it has become practically synonymous with quality performance fabric, especially for outdoor furniture. Its exceptional durability and color retention have made it a go-to choice for both residential and commercial spaces where furniture needs to look great while standing up to heavy use.
Velvet
Velvet is another tremendously popular furniture fabric, and its use proves that luxury never goes out of style.
While velvet needs more attention than some other fabrics, technology has made today’s velvets more durable and stain-resistant than ever before. This is a big reason why so many people use velvet throughout their homes, not just in formal spaces.
Options for modern velvet range from cotton and linen to synthetic blends. For high-traffic areas, mohair velvet is a particular favorite thanks to its impressive durability and resistance to crushing.
What is the most comfortable furniture fabric?
There is no “most comfortable” furniture fabric. Rather, it comes down to your needs and preferences. For example, cotton is naturally soft and smooth, while wool offers a more textured feel. Velvet, meanwhile, offers that sink-in softness that many people love.
What is the most durable furniture fabric?
Performance fabrics, particularly olefin (polypropylene), are quite durable and offer resistance to stains, dirt, fading, moisture, and general wear.
Solution-dyed acrylics also offer excellent durability and superior fade resistance, though at a higher price point.
Natural wool is also remarkably resilient but requires more maintenance than synthetic options.
What is high performance fabric for furniture?
High-performance fabrics are specially engineered materials designed to be more durable and more easily maintained than traditional furniture fabrics.
These materials are solution-dyed and have durability ratings starting at 15,000 double rubs for residential use, with commercial grades exceeding 30,000 double rubs. They also offer built-in protection against spills and stains.
While they may cost more upfront, their exceptional longevity and easy maintenance make them a popular choice for homes with kids, pets, or heavily used furniture.
What type of fabric should you use for upholstery?
High-traffic family spaces = Performance fabrics or wool
Formal living areas = Velvet or leather
Sunny rooms = Acrylic fabrics (to prevent fading)
Budget-conscious but durable = Cotton or faux leather
Classic, timeless look or breathability = Linen
Contact Redesign Upholstery for furniture Fabric
Ready to find the perfect fabric for your furniture? Contact Redesign Upholstery, and one of our fabric experts will help you explore your options.
You can also visit our Redesign Upholstery Store to browse our collection of furniture fabrics and order directly!
Redesign Upholstery is located in the Las Vegas area and is here to serve your needs!
