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How to choose the right commercial upholstery fabrics

We explore the heavy-duty fabrics that are bringing beauty and practicality to commercial interiors

Linwood Fabric | Helter Skelter Velvet | Redcurrant

The “contract market” is a very broad term and can include projects from the largest hotels to airports, cinema, the care sector and everything in between. ‘Here at Linwood, we have been designing fabric and wallpaper for more than 30 years and like to focus on contract projects that require individuality in their design with colour, flair and imagination at their heart,’ explains Barny Gloyn, Managing Director of Linwood.

He adds: ‘Increasingly hotels, restaurants and bars are using their design schemes to set them apart and recreate an environment for visitors that is luxurious and inviting – a standard and level of design for people to aspire to.

‘The fabrics and wallpapers we supply to the contract market are often the same as the ones we sell to our domestic customers; key areas to think about are durability, cleanability and meeting the relevant Flame Retardant (FR) regulations that apply to projects in the commercial space.’

Join us as we explore how to choose the right commercial upholstery fabrics for your next project to ensure they will provide enduring good looks as well as value for money. 

Why choosing the right upholstery fabric matters

Guillam Coffee House | Rock + Poppins | Linwood Fabric |Lundy Tamar Ember | Tango Velvet Peanut

Lundy Tamar in Ember and Tango Velvet in PeanutGuillam Coffee House, Notting Hill. Designers: Rock + Poppins

We all know that the choice of fabric plays a huge role in the overall look and longevity of a piece of furniture – and never more so than when it comes to commercial upholstery. Furniture destined for hotels, restaurants and corporate office spaces must not only look good but also be incredibly durable, so that it will happily withstand years of regular use.

A well-chosen commercial upholstery fabric will enhance the enjoyment of the space for the customer or employee, providing a sense of comfort and luxury. In this project for Guillam Coffee House in Notting Hill, Jo Ash of design studio Rock + Poppins chose Linwood’s Tamar fabric in Ember for the banquette seating, complementing it with our Tango Velvet in Peanut for the fluted seat backWe wanted to combine the velvet with an amazing tonal weave that is both incredibly durable & gives super-luxe looks as well,’ notes Jo of the tactile pairing. ‘These are fabrics you would be happy to put on your own sofa at home,’ she adds.

 

Key factors to consider when choosing a fabric

Helter Skelter Small Prints II in Sprig. The Ashton, Bristol. Designers: Jonathon Morgan Design Associates.

When selecting upholstery fabric for a commercial setting, there are a number of factors to bear in mind:

Durability and wear resistance: For upholstery, we consider the internationally recognised Martindale Rub Test, a measure of a fabrics ability to resist wear,’ says Barny Gloyn, ‘We can then help customers make an informed decision taking into consideration where it will be used. Martindale rub tests serve a guide, with 30,000 rubs the minimum for general contract grade and 40,000+ rubs the level set for severe contract use. Bar stools, for example, have a tough life and benefit from a hardwearing fabric such as Omega velvet which has an impressive count of 100,000 upwards. Elsewhere in a hotel, occasional chairs in bedrooms are utilised less frequently, giving you more options.

Stain and water resistance: Stain resistant finishes are available on many of our fabrics and help fabrics look good for longer; ask our contract team (contracts@linwoodfabrics.com) for more details.

Comfort and aesthetics: Of course, it is vital to balance durability with the look and feel of a fabric, as this can have a huge influence on the decorative appeal of a project. A wonderfully tactile fabric can bring a sense of comfort to a seating area, while colours and patterns serve to enliven a scheme. For The Ashton pub in Bristol, Principal Senior Designer of JMDA, Alexandra Mason, deftly combined texture and print, teaming a very hard-wearing velvet for the chair seats with Linwood’s lively printed linen, Helter Skelter, for the chair backs. ‘We were inspired by The Ashton’s country park neighbour, Ashton Court Estate, to use woodland themes, and Helter Skelter worked with our concept as the natural forms and colours had a feel of the British countryside,’ she explains.

Fire retardancy: In all contract situations, there are minimum FR standards for materials employed, which apply equally to fabrics and wallpapers,’ says Barny Gloyn. ‘As a general rule, if your project involves welcoming in the public into a space – bar, restaurant, hotel, cinema, etc – you will need to consult with your local fire officer to check the FR standards. In general, for upholstery (including upholstered headboards) you will need fabrics to meet ‘Crib 5’ – a test that burns a criss-crossed stack of small wooden sticks on a test seat pad. People sometimes assume that this test also applies to curtains but this is not the case; curtains have a different contract curtain vertical flame test – BS5867. Be careful to check with your fire officer before ordering FR treatments, and always talk to your fabric supplier about the fabric’s end use, as there are different FR treatments available and they can affect the weight, drape and touch to a greater or lesser degree. 

Don’t forget that hotel bedspreads and wallpaper have their own FR rules and if you plan to upholster a wall with fabric panels, consult with your fire officer as they may disagree on whether to treat this as upholstery or drapes.’

 

Common types of commercial upholstery fabrics and their uses


The Wave in Moonbeam on Omega velvet from Omega PrintsVilla Alma, Sweden. Designers: Trapiche.

When it comes to the variety of fabrics available for commercial upholstery, the choices are endless, spanning natural fabrics to clever blends that provide super-durable options for high traffic areas. Linen is one of the most sustainable fabrics, although pure linen versions tend to be suitable for light commercial use only. Cotton is another natural choice and while it is more water-intense to produce, there are some fantastic eco-friendly recycled cotton fabrics available – see our Verde collection, a blend of 80% recycled cotton and 20% acrylic, with a 50,000 rub count. Wool is another natural fabric that is incredibly durable as well as having inherent spill and fire-resistant properties. And polyester velvets are hugely popular in the commercial upholstery world as they are both hard wearing and subtly glamorous, lending a luxurious, tactile quality to a space – witness The Wave from our Omega Prints velvet collection, which was used in this suite in Villa Alma in Sweden. It boasts an impressive 100,000 rub count and is spill resistant, as well as being machine washable at 30 degrees. Bear in mind that clever fabric blends often result in particularly robust options, so if you are looking for, say, a linen fabric, consider a blended composition that will provide extra durability – Linwood’s Orta tumbled linen blend fabric comes in 16 grounding hues and has a rub count of 100,000. Other options for very high traffic areas are polyurethane upholstery and faux leather; real leather, meanwhile, is fantastic for adding character to a project – our well-known Saddle upholstery leather is an eco-friendly option as it is recycled using offcuts from the fashion industry.

 

How to maintain and care for commercial upholstery fabrics

Japanese Garden in Blossom (Banquette)Kibou, Cambridge. Designers: Q&A Interior Design Ltd

It is essential that commercial upholstery is kept clean and pristine in order to ensure the comfort and safety of guests or employees.

Regular maintenance plays a key role here, as general dust is a key culprit for making fabrics appear tired and lacklustre. Seating and other upholstered pieces such as headboards should be routinely vacuumed using an upholstery attachment and the same applies for soft furnishings such as curtains and blinds. In the case of velvet upholstery fabrics, vacuuming also helps maintain the pile. Loose seat or back cushions need regularly plumping to redistribute the filling and eliminate dust and if they can be rotated, this will help increase their longevity.

For spills and stains, it is vital to carefully follow the guidelines regarding each specific fabric, as specialist cleaning solutions and even water can irreparably damage certain fabrics. Linwood has an extensive range of highly practical commercial upholstery fabrics that feature stain resistant finishes, including many of our polyester velvets such as the Omega and Omega Prints collections. For the back of the banquette seating in Cambridge restaurant Kibou, Stephen Quiddington of design practice Q & A used Japanese Garden from Omega Prints, a striking 1940s style toile that perfectly suited this stylish Japanese restaurant. ‘Its traditional-meets-Western interpretation of Japanese culture is Kibou in a nutshell,’ he explains, adding, ‘The velvet’s stain resistant qualities meant that it is ideal for this high traffic space.’ If spills such as coffee or wine do occur, they can simply be blotted using a soft, lint-free cloth or paper towel. Leave it on the spill until as much liquid is absorbed as possible; it can then be wiped with a wet wipe. If you require a stain resistant finish, please speak to our contract team (contracts@linwoodfabrics.com) who can advise if the chosen design can have a stain resistant finish.

All commercial upholstery will require a regular deep clean, and this calls for a specialist upholstery cleaning service which will know the right solvents to use according to the fabric’s care label. To avoid colour variations, it is important to clean all items featuring the same fabric in one go, from upholstery to soft furnishings such as curtains or bed drapes. For more advice on maintaining upholstery fabrics, visit https://linwoodfabric.com/pages/fabric-care-and-cleaning-advice

 

Matching upholstery fabrics to high-traffic environments

Linwood Fabric | Orta

Orta collection.

It goes without saying that careful thought needs to go into how the upholstery will be used in order to choose a fabric that will offer longevity and therefore value for money. If it is destined for a bar or a restaurant, spills and stains will be an inevitable part of life so it is important to pick a fabric that is not only very hard wearing but that also features a stain resistant finish. If the upholstery is intended for a lounge area that will see lots of traffic, make sure you choose a very high rub count to ensure durability – our Orta design, for example, resembles a heavyweight linen but it is blended with viscose and polyester for an extremely durable yet refined commercial upholstery fabric with a rub count of 100,000. Also bear in mind that pale colours will inevitably show more stains and scuffs than darker ones and patterned and self-patterned fabrics are often more forgiving than plain ones.

To add the ultimate statement of individuality to a contract project, talk to us about a custom design or colourway. For a minimum quantity, we can often find a bespoke solution - perhaps a printed velvet, a specific dyed linen colour, or a feature wallpaper. Contact our specialist team – contracts@linwoodfabrics.com to discuss your needs.

Sustainability and eco-friendly options

 
Albertine in Classic Rose from The English Garden collectionHotel Bellora in Sweden. Designers: Trapiche.

The choice of sustainable options in the world of commercial upholstery has never been better. Here are some of our favourites:

Recycled polyester velvets offer luxe appeal and, with their glorious reflective properties, they lend saturated colour to interiors like no other fabric. Our Omega III eco velvet fabric is made from 60% recycled polyester and has a rub count of 100,000, it is durable, stain resistant and even washable at 30 degrees.

Linen fabrics are one of the most sustainable options as they are made from the flax plant which can be grown in poor soil and requires no additional water other than rainwater to produce. It brings a lovely textural quality to interiors, as witnessed in the super-stylish Hotel Bellora in Gothenburg, Sweden, where our captivating Albertine printed linen fabric was used for the banquette seating.

Like linen, cotton is a natural fabric that can biodegrade at the end of its life, although conventional cotton is very water intensive to cultivate and process and it is also known for being one of the world’s most chemically intensive crops. More sustainable options include organic cotton, which doesn’t use hazardous fertilisers and pesticides in its production, and recycled cotton, which gives a new life to cotton fabrics. Our Verde collection uses 80 % recycled cotton from the fashion industry to create a hard-wearing fabric that is chemical-free and super soft.

Wool is a naturally eco-friendly fabric since it is easily renewable and water repellent, which makes it forgiving of spills. It is also breathable, ensuring that it is warm in winter yet cool in summer. Our collection of hard-wearing wool upholstery fabrics includes Lana, which is made from recycled wool collected from offcuts of the fashion industry.

Eco-friendly commercial upholstery fabrics deliver long-term benefits as they are kinder to the environment as well as being cost effective, as their durability reduces the need for frequent replacements.

Making the right upholstery choice for high-traffic spaces

Freya in Berry.

We hope these tips have set you on the path to finding the perfect fabric for your commercial project. Choose a fabric that combines your maintenance needs with aesthetic appeal and you will have long-lasting upholstery that will look good for years to come. Contact your upholsterer or our specialist team –contracts@linwoodfabrics.com for advice before you buy, and remember to use our service offering free samples so that you can view the designs in situ.

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