Guide to Upholstery Fibers

This guide for choosing the right upholstery fibers and fabrics for your furniture comes from The Spruce.

When creating a fabric, manufacturers often blend fibers together, because blending fibers produce more interesting textures and colors.

Blending fibers can also make a fabric more supple, and better able to withstand everyday wear and tear.

Natural fibers, which can be cellulose or plant-based fibers, and protein, or animal fibers.
Synthetic, or man-made fibers.

These fibers are derived from plants, and cotton and linen are two of the best-known ones.

Cotton: Cotton is a popular plant-based fiber that is used extensively.

There are different grades of cotton. Premium grades, which have long staple, can be almost as expensive as silk and just as lustrous. Lesser grades, with a shorter fiber length, can be fuzzy and dull.
Cotton takes finishes and dyes really well.
Cotton is strong and versatile, but not very resistant to wrinkling and stretching.
It soils easily and consequently needs fabric protection to deter stains. Cotton blended with other fibers is easier to use than plain cotton.

Linen: Linen is another plant-derived fiber, and shares many similarities with cotton.

Linen is available in a variety of grades, with the finer grades looking smooth and almost silk like.
Like cotton, linen is not very resilient and wrinkles easily, and needs to be blended with other fibers.
Linen ages well, as it doesn’t fade from light and is resistant to insects. However, it is prone to mold and mildew and will not tolerate very high humidity. Because of its high maintenance, it is more often used in drapery and wall coverings instead of upholstery.
Linen can be cleaned easily as it can be washed and ironed or dry cleaned.

Protein or animal fibers such as silk and wool are used in high-end fabrics as they are expensive to produce.

Silk: Silk is derived from silkworms and has been a symbol of luxury since time immemorial.

Reeled silk is smooth and shiny, while spun silk is more textured.
Silk is strong, resilient, and can last a long time if not exposed to sunlight. It doesn’t mildew easily.
Silk is beautiful, but due to its cost, is only used in high-end fabrics.
It can be dry cleaned or cleaned with a mild detergent.

Wool: Wool is obtained from sheep fleece and the term”virgin wool” denotes new, not recycled wool.

Wool can be soft and fuzzy as well as hard and smooth.
Wool is wrinkle-resistant, as well as soil resistant, and can stand up to abrasion, mildew, and sunlight. It does need to be protected from insects, however.
It makes a durable, but relatively expensive upholstery fabric, and is often blended with other synthetic fibers.
To clean wool either dry-clean or use a mild detergent and cold water.

Click here to learn more about upholstery fabric choices.