Types of Upholstery

The one room that has the most upholstered furniture than any other room in a house is the living room, The fabrics play an important role to change the look of the living room and it is the fabrics that make the living room comfortable. Varieties of materials are used for upholstery but you should be very careful in choosing your fabrics. Types of Materials Used in Upholstery

• Leather
• Suede
• Vinyl
• Micro Fiber
• Cotton
• Cotton Blend
• Silk
• Linen
• Polyester
• Nylon
• Rayon
• Wool
• Velvet

Fiber	Source	Properties
Wool	Natural fiber from sheep, highly crimped	Excellent hand, high resiliency, attacked by moths, fair abrasion resistance, poor sunlight resistance, burns slowly, self-extinguishes in flames, requires dry cleaning
Cotton	Natural plant fiber used for centuries	Excellent absorbency, resistant to moths, dyes well, wrinkles easily, moderate abrasion resistance, moderate sunlight resistance, extremely flammable unless treated, easy to care for
Rayon	Manufactured fiber made from wood chips	Inexpensive, good hand, may shrink or stretch when wet, poor abrasion resistance, moderate sunlight resistance, resistant to moths and mildew, extremely flammable unless treated with a flame retardant finish, requires dry cleaning
Nylon	First synthetic fiber, produced in 1928	Resilient, excellent abrasion resistance, poor sunlight resistance, burns slowly with melting, easy care and maintenance
Polyester	Synthetic fiber favored in blends to add dimensional stability	Excellent resilience, resistant to insects and mildew, good abrasion resistance, good sunlight resistance, burns slowly with melting, resists waterborne stains
Acrylic	Synthetic fiber famous for wool-like feel	Moderate resiliency, attractive hand, moderate abrasion resistance, excellent sunlight resistance, burns with melting, easy care
Olefin	One of the more recently developed synthetic fibers	Inexpensive, extremely heat sensitive, resistant to chemicals and insects, excellent abrasion resistance, poor sunlight resistance, burns with melting, resists waterborne stains
Leather	Processed hides and skins from animals	Excellent hand, durable, varies in quality, requires special care in cleaning, self-extinguishes in flames