Category: Contract Fabric

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Designer Fabrics & Luxury Wallcoverings 2012 – Latest Collections of Faux Leather & Raffia

British Institute of Interior Design

Interior Design 101. Back to basics.

Minimally patterned, plain and simple patterns matter when you choose designer fabrics for your interior design scheme. It’s not just the ‘important’ stuff you have to worry about; it’s all the stuff.

Design after design. Pattern after pattern. Squashed into corners. Covered ceilings. Hung on walls. Something here, something there… OK you might have certain pieces that take centre stage in your grand design but you also have to set the stage with the backdrops, the reflected light, the subtle blend of auxiliary textures.

To a certain degree, if you must, you can compromise on the backdrops. It’s great having a silk panelled wall, relatively inexpensive and good to the touch. Not so good when it fades at differing rates in the exposed sun-lit areas of the room.

So when you choose designer fabrics yes you should be wowed by the colours, designs and textures BUT you should also be wowed and interested in the technical properties. Your clients might initially thank you for a great looking job. They won’t thank you if it starts to fall apart. they may well have already paid you at that point (so you’re OK right?) but will you then get recommended to their friends…probably not. It is so, so easy to make this kind of mistake.

So try faux silk rather than silk. It looks and feels pretty much the same but can be excellent in terms of non-fading.

So try faux leather. A wide variety of finishes and qualities are available and many are great for wall covering (!) as well as upholstery. Great to cover chairs or a bar in a restaurant but also in your kitchen as they can relatively easily be cared for and cleaned. If you love leather you might find that your upholsterer might not love that choice as you are working with hides of varying sizes, whereas with faux leather you are working with a fabric available by the metre.

Click for faux leather or faux silk designer fabric samples.

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Faux Leather in Blue

Fine Faux Leather is available from KOTHEA in several collections reflecting varying degrees of technical properties such as thickness, flame retardancy and abrasion resistance (Martindale, Wyzenbeek). Our collections are typically used for contract applications in the hospitality and marine industries.

Here are  some of the blue colourways that are available, click an image to view a slideshow

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Crib 5, Crib 3 FR treatment – is it OK to mix these? inter liner fabric

For the complete guide to Crib 5 and how to specify fire-rated fabrics for contract interiors, see: BS 5852 Crib 5: A Complete Guide for Interior Designers and Specifiers.

A designer asked: is it acceptable to use a Crib 5 interliner with a Crib 3 fabric in a restaurant?

The short answer is no. In non-residential spaces an interliner does not compensate for a fabric that does not meet the required fire standard. The Crib 5 interliner and Crib 3 fabric combination would not be acceptable in a restaurant or any other public space. The fabric itself must either be inherently Crib 5 or be treated to achieve Crib 5.

This combination might be acceptable in an office environment where Crib 3 is the required standard, but not in a public-facing hospitality environment.

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A Chat With Verity du Sautoy – Her Thoughts On Winter Fabrics

Luxury Silk velvet From KOTHEA
Truly beautiful Cashmere Silk Velvet by KOTHEA

KOTHEA Fabric Picks For A Chilly Winter’s Day
With Verity du Sautoy of KOTHEA.

We love the seasons. All have their beauties and all have touched our senses in memorable ways over the years. Winter is no exception: lower, more balanced light; quietness and chaos with both the shopping and the weather; festive celebrations; the cuddle of a loved one; the hope and expectation of early spring flowers grasping for rare and tiny glimmers of light; and, perhaps, the welcomed warmth of a beautiful fabric.

Some of my best memories are centred on family: a warm fire; a little baby; or a bouncing toddler. Then an old children’s classic on the iPlayer watched on my Mac as it balances precariously on an elegant coffee table. I stroke my children’s hair with one hand and rest my other hand on my sofa. A generous cushion is warm, encapsulating and a bit of fun for the little ones to hide under. The curtains are not yet fully drawn but they smooth the boundary to the cold outside and give us tantalising glimpses of the world beyond – should we venture too close to the sheers that offer the final, soft protection from the elements.

Dominika B Tana Lawn

I work for a fabric company. I love fabric. I can’t pretend that it (fabric) is a be-all and end-all to life and that somehow it will make your life complete. It can’t. But what it clearly can do is complete the sensory experiences in the parts of life that, if you choose, you have control over…the parts of your home. Memories are not just photo-like snapshots in your brain; they are stored, multi-sensory splashes of emotion.

Here are my Winter picks. They are actual ‘picks’ that I’ve recently purchased or are about to purchase.

Take my sofa as an example. My sofa isn’t Continue reading “A Chat With Verity du Sautoy – Her Thoughts On Winter Fabrics”

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Soneva 66-300-06 Mahogony

Soneva 66-300-06 Mahogony by KOTHEA
Soneva 66-300-06 Mahogony, a photo by KOTHEA on Flickr.

That wallpaper was nice…last year. Wallpaper! Surely it’s time to move into 2011; or 2012 for that matter. Remember that wallcoverings come in many foms not just paper. KOTHEA are now releasing 7 Raffia Wallcovering Designs each in a range of colourways.

KOTHEA’s ‘Soneva’ design is a classic weave of natural cellulose, tough enough to exceed 60,000 double rubs, making it suitable for residential or contract usage – if properly treated and specified. At 106cm wide each standard roll is 36m long with a cut-length service available.

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Soneva 66-300-02 Walnut

Soneva 66-300-02 Walnut by KOTHEA
Soneva 66-300-02 Walnut, a photo by KOTHEA on Flickr.

That wallpaper was nice…last year. Wallpaper! Surely it’s time to move into 2011; or 2012 for that matter. Remember that wallcoverings come in many foms not just paper. KOTHEA are now releasing 7 Raffia Wallcovering Designs each in a range of colourways.

KOTHEA’s ‘Soneva’ design is a classic weave of natural cellulose, tough enough to exceed 60,000 double rubs, making it suitable for residential or contract usage – if properly treated and specified. At 106cm wide each standard roll is 36m long with a cut-length service available.

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Soneva 66-300-03 Wicker

Soneva 66-300-03 Wicker by KOTHEA
Soneva 66-300-03 Wicker, a photo by KOTHEA on Flickr.

That wallpaper was nice…last year. Wallpaper! Surely it’s time to move into 2011; or 2012 for that matter. Remember that wallcoverings come in many foms not just paper. KOTHEA are now releasing 7 Raffia Wallcovering Designs each in a range of colourways.

KOTHEA’s ‘Soneva’ design is a classic weave of natural cellulose, tough enough to exceed 60,000 double rubs, making it suitable for residential or contract usage – if properly treated and specified. At 106cm wide each standard roll is 36m long with a cut-length service available.

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Maldive 66-200-01 Cane

Maldive 66-200-01 Cane by KOTHEA
Maldive 66-200-01 Cane, a photo by KOTHEA on Flickr.

That wallpaper was nice…last year. Wallpaper! surely it’s time to move on. Remember that wallcoverings come in many foms not just paper. KOTHEA are now releasing 7 Raffia Wallcovering Designs each in a range of colourways.

KOTHEA’s ‘Maldive’ design is a classic weave of natural cellulose, tough enough to exceed 60,000 double rubs, making it suitable for residential or contract usage – if properly treated and specified. At 106cm wide each standard roll is 36m long with a cut-length service available.

Via Flickr:
That wallpaper was nice…last year. Wallpaper! surely it’s time to move on. Remember that wallcoverings come in many foms not just paper. KOTHEA are now releasing 7 Raffia Wallcovering Designs each in a range of colourways.

KOTHEA’s ‘Maldive’ design is a classic weave of natural cellulose, tough enough to exceed 60,000 double rubs, making it suitable for residential or contract usage – if properly treated and specified. At 106cm wide each standard roll is 36m long with a cut-length service available.

Posted on

Maldive 66-200-03 Wicker

Maldive 66-200-03 Wicker by KOTHEA
Maldive 66-200-03 Wicker, a photo by KOTHEA on Flickr.

That wallpaper was nice…last year. Wallpaper! surely it’s time to move on. Remember that wallcoverings come in many foms not just paper. KOTHEA are now releasing 7 Raffia Wallcovering Designs each in a range of colourways.

KOTHEA’s ‘Maldive’ design is a classic weave of natural cellulose, tough enough to exceed 60,000 double rubs, making it suitable for residential or contract usage – if properly treated and specified. At 106cm wide each standard roll is 36m long with a cut-length service available.

Via Flickr:
That wallpaper was nice…last year. Wallpaper! surely it’s time to move on. Remember that wallcoverings come in many foms not just paper. KOTHEA are now releasing 7 Raffia Wallcovering Designs each in a range of colourways.

KOTHEA’s ‘Maldive’ design is a classic weave of natural cellulose, tough enough to exceed 60,000 double rubs, making it suitable for residential or contract usage – if properly treated and specified. At 106cm wide each standard roll is 36m long with a cut-length service available.

Posted on

Maldive 66-200-02 Walnut

Maldive 66-200-02 Walnut by KOTHEA
Maldive 66-200-02 Walnut, a photo by KOTHEA on Flickr.

That wallpaper was nice…last year. Wallpaper! surely it’s time to move on. Remember that wallcoverings come in many foms not just paper. KOTHEA are now releasing 7 Raffia Wallcovering Designs each in a range of colourways.

KOTHEA’s ‘Maldive’ design is a classic weave of natural cellulose, tough enough to exceed 60,000 double rubs, making it suitable for residential or contract usage – if properly treated and specified. At 106cm wide each standard roll is 36m long with a cut-length service available.

Via Flickr:
That wallpaper was nice…last year. Wallpaper! surely it’s time to move on. Remember that wallcoverings come in many foms not just paper. KOTHEA are now releasing 7 Raffia Wallcovering Designs each in a range of colourways.

KOTHEA’s ‘Maldive’ design is a classic weave of natural cellulose, tough enough to exceed 60,000 double rubs, making it suitable for residential or contract usage – if properly treated and specified. At 106cm wide each standard roll is 36m long with a cut-length service available.