Whatever you call it — sofa, couch, settee, divan, squab, davenport – it is one of the most important items in your house. It is where you spend your free time with your family and relax. But it should also make your house look nice and cozy. So, to get the best sofa your money can buy let’s take a look at the various fabrics and talk about benefits and drawbacks of each of them.
When shopping for a new sofa, it seems like there are endless options especially when it comes to color and style. However, when selecting the right upholster material for your new sofa, your personal requirements and lifestyle come into play. It is a good idea to check attributes of each of the materials and how they fit into your house and lifestyle. Always keep in mind that before choosing the fabrics, first of all you need to consider your current lifestyle and what will suit the needs of yourself and your family best. So, you need to answer the following before going for the purchase:
- Are there young children in your household?
- Are there any pets?
- Do you lie down on you sofa, do you eat on it?
- Is anybody in your family allergic?
- What is the overall style of your household?
- Are you ready to maintain your new sofa, if yes, how much time are you ready to spend doing that?
Given the variety of furniture fabrics, things can get pretty confusing when shopping for a new couch, so we put together this quick guide to the best sofa fabrics to make things a little easier for you.
There exist several different upholstery materials. Each kind features its own unique characteristics, like stain and fade resistance and strength and style. When choosing a couch’s fabric, keep in mind that this choice has to do with the lifespan of your new couch. Knowing well what you want and need can help you find a perfect fit for you and your family furniture-wise!
Polyester & Polyester Blend
Polyester looks like leather. But it is way cheaper, in fact, it is one of the least expensive fabrics out there. Polyester is a synthetic material that features great stain- and fade-resistant qualities. If blended, polyester creates an upholstery with good resistance to fading, crushing, and wrinkling. Polyester also features good withstanding of abrasions. However, there is a downside to it as it may crack or stretch over time. It requires proper care with vacuum and special cleaning solutions.
Genuine Leather
If you are in the market for a new sofa, leather is considered one of the best materials. Genuine leather offers natural elegance and makes your house look fancy. Leather furniture makes your house look luxurious and gives it this upper class feel! Moreover, genuine leather makes your couch look and feel amazing, offering high durability. With proper care, a leather couch can last for many decades. Leather upholstered sofas do not require high maintenance. Just wash them every once in a while to keep them fresh. If you spill something on a leather couch, all you have to do is wipe it down. Good news for pet lovers, leather sofas do a great job helping pet owners deal with pet stain and shedding issues. However, as it is often the case, there are some downsides to a leather couch. First, it is wrong to assume that “leather furniture” always means good quality. There are many different qualities and nuances and not all leather sofas are automatically good quality. Some genuine leather will scuff and scratch easily, so pay attention to every detail when shopping for leather furniture. This is where the price comes into play. The initial price of a leather sofa can be off-putting despite the fact that it offers more value because leather sofas last longer. Secondly, leather is more sensitive to fluctuations in temperature, it can feel warmer in summer and rather chilly in winter. Thirdly, leather offers less variety in terms of colors and patterns.
Linen & Linen Blend
Linen is a natural-fiber fabric. It is pretty lightweight, but about 30% stronger than cotton. It is very durable, antistatic, and hypoallergenic. However, this fabric wrinkles easily and gets softer over time. So, if you have kids, it is not recommended to go for a linen sofa. Linen fabric is easy to clean with a water-based detergent or baking soda. Linen sofas look very elegant. However, linen sofas stain easily, so it is a good idea to put them in low-traffic or adult-only areas.
Cotton & Cotton Blend
Cotton is a natural cost-efficient fiber that offers thousands of colors and patterns. Cotton has a very tight weave, so an upholstered cotton sofa can last for years. If you have a sunny living room, cotton sofa is definitely for you, as it will not fade in direct sunlight. Cotton is a hypoallergenic fabric. It is breathable and resistant to moisture build-up, making it a great choice for your new sofa. Cotton is soft and not prone to pilling. The downside is that cotton absorbs liquids easily, which turns into stains eventually, making it a high maintenance material. Also, cotton lacks elasticity and wrinkles easily. However, all these drawbacks are inherent in traditional fabric furniture. But technology doesn’t stand still, there are performance fabrics have greatly improved the quality and durability of fabric sofas. Keep reading to find out more.
Velvet
Velvet couches look amazing in a transitional aesthetic. Velvet upholstered sofas look multidimensional, while the softness of the fabric makes them feel warm. Velvet sofas will last for decades and never pill. Your velvet sofa will stay plump and wrinkle-free if you rotate the cushions and fluff the pillows often. There’s one downside to velvet however, and it is that it can pick up a lot of pet hair. So, pet owners should stay away from velvet sofas.
Chenille
Chenille upholstery fabric is somewhat similar to velvet. However, in the Chenille case the fabric’s loops are closed unlike velvet’s open nap. This means that chenille upholstery is just as soft and cushy as velvet, but it’s chunkier and more durable in the long run. Chenille is not a very pet-friendly fabric. Attention pet owners, pet paws can get tangled in the fabric loops. Chenille is extremely easy to clean, just brush it with an upholstery brush and spot-clean with water and a light-colored rag.
Microfiber
Microfiber as an upholstery fabric offers a lot of good qualities for your sofa. We’re talking durability, stain-resistance, and the fact that microfiber won’t fade over time. Microfiber is also hypoallergenic. Moreover, this upholstery feels so warm. A microfiber sofa is one of the best choices for families with kids and pets, as the loops in the fabric are small enough that your pet’s paws won’t get snagged in them. Microfiber sofas are easy to clean. Microfiber sofas are comfortable for resting and relaxing. It is very easy to care for microfiber sofas, simply vacuum any pet hair or dust that’s accumulated in the fabric, dab with a wet towel, and you’re good to go. With all these advantages there’s one downside to synthetic fabrics, it perpetuates static electricity, so you can get shocked by static when sitting on a synthetic sofa.
Overall, there are two main categories of upholstery materials for your new sofa. First, there are sofa materials made from natural fibers. Secondly, there are sofa materials made from synthetic fibers. Let’s take a closer look at pros and cons of those upholstery materials.
Sofa Materials Made From Natural Fibers
Natural fibers are basically materials directly obtained from plants and animals. Here are some of the most popular natural fiber materials:
Wool: Wool offers pretty good stain, wrinkle, fading, and pilling resistance characteristics. Often, wool is blended with a synthetic fiber which increases its durability and provides easy cleaning characteristics.
Silk: Silk is a very soft, delicate, and fragile material. Silk sofas must be professionally cleaned. When choosing a silk sofa, it would be a good idea to put it in a formal area with low traffic.
Cotton: Cotton has pretty good characteristics when it comes to withstanding fading, pilling, and overall wear. Cotton offers a wide range of colors and patterns for your new sofa. But there’s a downside to cotton sofas, as they soil and wrinkle easily. In many cases, cotton is blended with other fibers to offer more durability, turning it into a family-friendly fabric.
Leather: Leather sofas feature one of the best durability characteristics on the market. Leather is very easy to clean and does a really good job withstanding the wear and tear of everyday life. Thus, if your family has kids and pets, leather is a must. However, one downside of genuine leather is that it is pretty expensive. You can choose faux leather, these fabrics are similar to leather, but they are not at all durable and peel off and crack over time. Our company does not use or recommend these materials.
Sofa Materials Made From Synthetic Fibers
Synthetic fibers are manufactured from many components. They are created to look like natural fibers but, at the same time, offer better stain resistant characteristics. Some of the most common synthetic fibers are listed below:
Nylon: Nylon has the reputation of one of the strongest and most durable upholstery fabrics you can find. Nylon sofas have very good resistance to staining. Sometimes, nylon is blended with other fibers, which prevents it from crushing, fading, and pilling.
Acrylic: Acrylic is intended to imitate wool. Acrylic sofas feature great resistance to wear, wrinkling, soiling, and fading. Acrylic fibers are easy to deal with. It won’t be a problem to clean and remove any kind of scratch or mark on their surface.
Olefin: Olefin is a fiber that is created by melting down plastic pellets which are then spun into yarn and woven. If you are looking for a sofa that would be used heavily a daily basis in rooms with high traffic, Olefin sofa is your right choice, as Olefin is an extremely durable material. Olefin fibers are naturally resistant to stains and abrasions, mildew, and fire. The biggest problem with Olefin sofas is their poor resistance to sunlight. It may even melt if exposed to heat or direct sunlight. So, if you have a lot of sunlight coming into your living room, you should look for something else.
Performance Fabrics
Outdoor furniture is the best example of performance fabrics. Performance fabrics feature the best durability characteristics. It is the strongest fabrics for your furniture you can find. Performance fabrics are tested to withstand at least 40,000 rubs. Another advantage of performance fabrics is ease of cleaning and good resistance to stains and fading. Moreover, performance fabrics have good resistance to abrasions. You can go for a brighter performance fabrics sofa without being afraid that it will be a nightmare to clean it once it gets soiled.
Different Materials, One Place
There are so many different choices and options when shopping for a new sofa, it is no wonder that you can get completely lost trying to find the right one. At Nordholtz, our skilled consultants will help you find the right fit for your home, create your custom style, choose the best dining room materials, find a piece for your budget, and offer their expert opinion. Nordholtz offers a variety of Aquaclean® fabrics. This technology is a revolutionary fabric treatment that allows you to clean the majority of household stains (wine, ink, sauce, fat, mud, chocolate, cream, etc.) using water only. You can find the most popular collections Mystic, Spirit, Carabu at our stores. For more info, go to https://nordholtz.com/design-center/mystic/
The bottom line is durable fabric is the right choice if you are looking for everyday use sofas. Thus, cotton or linen sofas will work just fine, offering good durability characteristics with a variety of colors and styles. If you are looking for a more luxury look but can’t afford genuine materials, synthetic microfiber sofas are exactly what you need. Synthetic microfiber can imitate most fabrics and offers good stain resistance. However, beware, blends of natural and synthetic fibers tend to pill within a year. If you want an exquisite and luxury look, wool and leather is right up your alley, offering great toughness. However, these genuine upholstery materials are pretty expensive. Silk sofas look exquisite but pretty fragile. Fabrics with patterns woven in tend to wear better than those with printed patterns.
We, at Nordholtz offer a wide range of modern affordable sofas. We offer the lowest prices, guaranteed. With a variety of options in our dining furniture showcase, you are sure to find a style that you like. Our mission is to get you a couch that will not only look great in your room but will also last for a long time because all our sofas are made of high-quality materials that are guaranteed to last for decades. Come to Nordholtz to find what’s right for you.