How to choose the best fabrics for beautiful and comfortable sofas
Beautiful and comfortable sofa upholstery fabrics: how best to choose them? In this article we will try to provide some information concerning the characteristics of quality upholstery for sofas and armchairs.
The fabrics that cover a sofa should not be chosen exclusively for their appearance but it is also important that the quality is appropriate to ensure adequate duration of the product over the years. It is essential to perform correct analysis of the situation of use: firstly, it is necessary to know if the sofa or armchair is being used in a house or in a room that is open to the public such as in hotels or restaurants. Secondly, the necessary requirements for fabrics are much more stringent but in this article we will examine only sofas and armchairs used in residential settings. For these reasons it is advisable to consider the presence of animals in the house, if the use is intensive and also the place where the sofa is positioned. On the basis of these factors, it is possible to choose higher or lower levels than the parameters indicated below.
The most important parameters for end consumers to locate the best fabrics for sofas are:
- Abrasion resistance which is measured through the Martindale abrasion test. A good resistance for residential use is obtained when the fabric exceeds at least 15,000 cycles
- Pilling or the formation of bobbles, the parameter with a value from 1 to 5 measures the formation of bobbles on the fabric subjected to rubbing, with 5 meaning no formation
- Resistance to rubbing, the parameter is evaluated on a scale from 1 to 5 and measures whether the colour of the upholstery fabric is transferred to other fabrics. Today most fabrics easily reach the maximum value
- Resistance to light, this parameter shows the resistance of coloured materials to sources of natural and artificial light. The score ranges from 1 to 8, where a resistance of 5 is already considered good.
In addition to the indicated parameters, stain-resistant and/or water-repellent fabrics can be chosen. It should be noted that the more natural the fabrics are, the more delicate they are. Leather, as an alternative to fabric, instead presents greater ease of cleaning. A sofa with removable fabric is undoubtedly preferable.
Quality fabrics for sofas designed to last over time
Ultimately then, the factors to be considered in the choice of a fabric for the upholstery of a sofa or of an armchair are:
- The ability of the fabric to reach adequate values within the parameters that we have indicated in the previous paragraph
- Possibility of washing and possible anti-stain and water-repellent treatment
- Removability
- Aesthetics
CTS Salotti: top quality upholstery fabrics
CTS Salotti is a Lombardy-based company known for the production of handcrafted sofas and armchairs. Made in Italy products, created with quality raw materials, carefully chosen to ensure maximum durability for these furnishing accessories.
The items offered by CTS Salotti can be customised not only in terms of size but also in the choice of fabrics thanks to a wide and extremely diverse range. Comfortable, quality upholstery to always guarantee the best in terms of comfort and resistance.
Anyone intending to purchase a sofa or an armchair with a quality and durable fabric should definitely explore the CTS Salotti customisable and handcrafted products.
