What Kind of Fabric to Cover a Chair?

Intended Usage

• Chairs placed in high usage areas, such as your family room or kitchen, need durable fabrics that require little care. You will also want durable fabrics on a chair if it's going into a room where small kids or pets will have access to it. Colorado State University Extension suggests using a nylon blend or a polypropylene fabric for a chair that will receive heavy use. Durable fabrics treated with stain-resistant finishes are appropriate for chairs going into a dining room. Save high-maintenance fabrics like damasks, satins or brocades for chairs that will receive little use, such as those placed in a formal living room.

Fabric Weave and Surface

• Tightly woven chair fabrics withstand wear better than upholstery fabrics with looser weaves, which tend to sag over time. Look for fabrics with a balanced weave, which means that the yarns are all approximately the same strength and size. Twill weaves handle wear and show dirt less than plain weaves. Fabrics with flat surfaces, such as satin, damask and brocade, typically show wear quite quickly because of their long surface yarns. The finish on glazed or polished cotton fabrics also wear out quickly and leave the fabric looking dull.

Durability

• Durability indicates how long the chair fabric will last. Cotton is a durable fabric that withstands fading, pilling and wear. Acrylic has good resistance to wear, soiling and wrinkling. Nylon is one of the most resilient upholstery materials and is typically blended with other types of fibers to produce a soil-resistant, fade-free chair fabric. Acetate isn't as durable as other fabric fibers and tends to discolor and weaken easily. Test the durability of fabric by stretching it out and releasing it. Select a fabric that recovers its shape completely without wrinkling.

Colorfastness

• Colorfastness refers to a fabric's ability to withstand color changing when exposed to wear and abrasion. Colorado State University recommends testing the colorfastness of a fabric by rubbing it with an emery board 30 times to see if the color rubs off or changes. You can also test colorfastness by rubbing the fabric with a clean, white cloth to see if the color transfers. Chairs in heavy usage areas generally require colorfast fabrics.

Printed Fabric

• Using printed fabrics on chairs in high traffic areas can go a long way toward hiding soil or stains. Fabrics with woven patterns tend to resist wear better than fabrics with printed patterns. Make sure that the size of the pattern is appropriate for the size of your chair. You don't want to use large prints for small or dainty chairs, and a large recliner might look silly with a dainty floral print. Test potential chair fabrics by rubbing the face of the fabric against itself. Avoid using a fabric if the surface print appears to rub off.

Care Requirements

• Determine the care requirements of potential chair fabrics and decide if you are willing to put that much effort into maintaining the material. Easy-care fabrics include cotton, nylon and acrylic. You will have to dry clean any wool or rayon fabric to keep your chair looking nice.