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Thursday, July 21st, 2016
Living Room Uttermost Snowden Tan Wing Chair 23158
There is an ever-growing trend on velvet interiors lately. There are many beautifully-designed places – some are even featured in interior design magazines – where this lovely material is used. Using velvet as a replacement for any other material can surely be considered an upgrade. Before you set out and find furniture pieces clothes in this classy material, you might as well learn its history to appreciate it more.
Velvet and Its Rich History
Velvet, believe it or not, has been around for thousands of years. Different nations have used it for different cultural reasons, through the centuries. Velvet is a highly-valued material that was equated to power, wealth and royalty.
The modern world now has manufacturing methods that made velvet available to everyone. Thanks to the expertise of Englishman Edmund Cartwright who made the power loom in 1785. In our day, velvet is known to be more versatile than the type that ancient people used.
What’s great about this textile is that it will never go out of style. Imagine this material lasting through the early Renaissance, to the early Asian palace dwellers, all the way to Belgium which became a major producer of velvet during the 1500s.
Silk Velvet
This kind of velvet has a signature sheen and it is also soft to touch. One touch and you know you’re feeling a luxurious material. Use this material in areas that have light traffic only. Take note of this as it is keen on revealing the pressures that it goes through. Highly-exposed silk velvet will end up with a lot of marks and creases so limit it to rooms such as the bedroom.
Maitland-Smith Dining Room Hand Carved Side Chair 4030-621
Linen Velvet
In contrast to the first type, linen velvet is more matte, hence, it has a shorter pile. It even feels drier when you touch it. It is easy to detect this kind of velvet; just look for that subtle strie and you know you’ve found one. This is not a defect, rather, a natural result of not being able to spin uniform-gauge yarn.
Here’s a tip, if you want to know the fiber content of a fabric, then be sure to read the showroom tags. The first item is often the face fiber while the second one is the ground fiber.
Cotton Velvet
This is considered as a tufted fabric. It is plain-woven with the pile and has about three millimeters of surface fiber length.
Cotton velvet may not be easy to clean, it even absorbs dyes well, but it is a thing of beauty if you know how to take care of it.
Nowadays, modern cotton velvet contains polyester fibers which make the fabric more resistant to wearing and tearing.
There may be dye-lot issues so ask for the showroom staff to order you swatches of the present dye lot. You would be surprised that velvet color may look different in the store than when you bring the actual swatches in your home.
Wool Velvet
Coziness and warmth are two of the elements that make velvet stunning. Wool velvet is a durable upholstery for those wintry months. This will feel hot during the summer season, though, so use a slipcover during the warmer seasons. Just make sure that the slipcover is loose, though, as it may ruin the nap if it’s too tight.
Mohair Velvet
This is a kind of wooly, soft fabric made from the silky hair of an Angora goat. And, nope, this is not the same as the Angora rabbit wool. If you want to cover your headboard or sofa with mohair, then be sure that you are really decided. This material could last for a very, very long time.
Tags: design textures, history, McCreerys, McCreerys Home Furnishings, texture in interior design, textures, tips, velvet, velvet design, velvet designs, velvet furniture, velvet history, velvet in interior design, velvet pieces, velvet styles
Posted in Accents, Interior Design 101, Interior Design Elements | No Comments »
Wednesday, March 30th, 2016
The Living Room Uttermost Chalina High Back Armchair 23611 offers a curvy, exposed wood frame. The white velvet fuses uniquely with the linen box cushion, giving it an exceptional look.
One of the most beautiful textiles that never go out of style is velvet. It has a rich history beginning from the Renaissance period when it was mostly spun from silk. It was the dress for nobles and the cover for the furniture pieces in many palaces ranging from Asia to Europe.
Hundreds of years later, Edmund Cartwright introduced the power loom. It was around 1785 when velvet became abundantly available. There were more fibers used in spinning this lovely textile.
The Silk Velvet
This textile offers that signature sheen and softness. One look at it and you’d know that it is luxurious. This type easily shows pressure marks as well as creases, though. To meet the demand of silk fans, there were mills that produced viscose velvet during turn of the 20th century. These budget velvets feel just like real silk.
The Cotton Velvet
This kind of velvet is more casual and cozy. These vary widely with regard to the length of their piles and naps. They may show creases, wrinkles and wear but these days, more polyester fibers may be blended in to make velvet that shows less wear.
Linen Velvet
When compared to silk velvet, this type of velvet appears more matte though it feels drier to the touch. Linen velvets have a subtle strie which is not a defect, rather it is there because it can be a tad difficult to spin uniform linen yarn.
The Wool Velvet
This kind of velvet is warm and cozy. It is highly durable and is best for seating units used during the wintry months. Use a slipcover during summer then bring out the wool velvet pieces during colder months.
Bedroom Uttermost Chahna King Headboard 23703 has a white and dark chocolate velvet fusion that mixes well with the aqua blue frame.
Bedroom Uttermost Chahna King Headboard 23703 has a white and dark chocolate velvet fusion that mixes well with the aqua blue frame.
Mohair Velvet
This is a soft, woolly fabric spun from the silky hair of Angora goats. Invest in this piece if you are ready to love it for the rest of your life. It is a durable textile that can outlive even its owners. It is spun at $100 a yard though the prices change considerably.
This kind of velvet has high-density warp, a high gauge of yarn, and has a deeper color. When you go shopping for velvet furniture pieces, take the liberty to bend the fabric. If you are not able to see rows in the pile, then you are definitely looking at quality product.
Panne Velvet
This is the result of velvet being crushed to a single direction using heavy pressure. It comes with a brilliant shine, to the point of being glossy. There are even pieces that appear metallic. It can be dyed with a neutral color if you are not a big fan of anything flashy.
Chenille
This may be a fabric with a character of its own but when you look more closely its luster is just like velvet’s. It has a flatter pile and is usually less smooth compared to velvet but it offers unique patterns and textures.
Chenille, just like velvet, is durable but it could show some sagging and stretching over time.
Crushed Velvet
There isn’t a lot of crushed velvet around since they are just used in holiday stockings placed over the mantel. It is a textile that offers a wonderful sheen that can easily overtake any room. To many homeowners, this look-at-me feature is what they are actually looking for.
Crushed velvet can be made from any fiber. What makes it distinguishable is that the velvet goes through a tapered cylinder to tamp down the pile.
Why Velvet?
You may ask yourself why you should choose velvet for furniture upholstery. Velvet is luxurious, it can be durable under proper care, and it will never go out of style. These are reasons good enough for you to bring home the lavish beauty of this fabric.
Tags: fabric, fabric choices, fabric options, McCreerys, McCreerys Home Furnishings, seating fabrics, sofa fabric, velvet, velvet design, velvet styles
Posted in Furniture, Interior Design Elements | No Comments »
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