Fabric Trends - Part 3 of 6
By: Sue Rosenbaum, Staff Designer
Since spring has sprung and we are all eager to be outdoors again, I will first mention outdoor fabrics, Solution Dyed Acrylics or 100% Polyester AKA: Sunbrella, Dura Bella. Over the past few years, the fabric vendors have been expanding these choices and are including many more options than wide awning stripes and solid colors. Fabulous prints, damasks, chenille textures and trims, yes, trims, are just a few. These fabrics, of course, can be used for outdoor upholstery, pillows or drapery, but they are so pretty that they can also be used indoors.
For those families that are very busy with children and pets, there are some strong and resilient fabrics out there for you, too. Plan to invest a little more for these fabrics, but it will be worth it in the long run. Manufacturers are learning from the commercial division of their businesses and have modeled some fabrics after the commercial offerings. Kravet Fabrics offers Crypton finishing, Robert Allen offers Contract goods with Crypton finishing, Brentano also offers Crypton finishing. Just as the name suggests these fabrics are “as strong as steel”. This type of fabric is perfect for family room furniture.
There are some surprising fabrics that are being shown in the designer fabric showrooms recently. Cork is one of them, a version of your wine cork sliced in to a veneer and backed for upholstery use. This is great as accent upholstery and as a headboard or a cornice board.
Leather has also been making a surprising appearance recently. Woven leather, like a basket, embossed leather, and silver and gold highlighted leather, also. These fabrics are very durable and can be used as toss pillows, an ottoman, or on accent furniture.
Fabric Care Tips
All decorator fabrics have been designed for a dry cleaning method of care. This helps the fabric maintain its hand and sizing, as well as minimizing the fading with cleaning.
W–Fabric coded with “W” should be spot cleaned with water-based shampoo or foaming upholstery cleaner. A solution of two tablespoons of ammoniated detergent (such as “Ajax”) mixed with a quart of water can be used when removing water-based stains such as ketchup, soft drinks, or alcoholic beverages. The stain should be wiped gently with a dampened cloth or sponge. Mixture should be used sparingly, being careful not to over wet. To avoid circling, move from outer edge of stain toward its center. Cushion casings should not be removed and laundered.
S–Fabric coded with “S” should be spot cleaned with dry cleaning solvent only. Care should be taken not to saturate the fabric. For oil-based stains such as salad dressing, butter and greasy foods, spot cleaning should be done using a cloth dampened with a water free dry cleaning product, such as “Carbona” or “Energine,” using the same procedures outlined above. Texize K2R Spot Remover” can be used on woven fabrics only. Cushion casings should not be removed and dry-cleaned.
Home laundering any decorator fabric is not recommended at all.
As always, I am available at the store for 1/2 hour appointments on Thursday afternoons, call to make an appointment to see me. I can solve your color dilemmas. Look for my article next month, Art and Accessories, the jewelry of design.
