Tag: contract fabrics

Posted on

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”

Posted on

Fabric Tips #13: Velvet Curtain Making

Image by tenz1225 via Flickr

Here are some additional pointers to consider when you are making a curtain using a velvet. Remember that a velvet is just a type of fabric and the fibre(s) that the velvet is made from is important.

So for example, we would always recommend that you line a curtain. This gives a superior appearance but also reduced the amount of light going through the fabric hence limiting as much as possible the effect of any fading.

If the velvet has a pile that can be flattened in one direction then we would recommend that you have the pile going downwards for SHINY velvet fabrics and PATTERNED VELVETS.

If however you make up the curtain with the pile upwards then this will deepen the colour so you could make the curtains this way for cotton velvets and Trevira Velvet and Mohair velvets.

These are general guidelines and it is not necessarily wrong if you make up the curtain ‘the other way’ just so long as you understand the implications to the finished look and performance of the material.

Related Articles
Posted on

Fabric Tips #12: Rolling a velvet

Alpaca-wool.
Image via Wikipedia

You’ve just ordered a new velvet and unrolled it to admire your purchase. But how do you re-roll it?

When you roll almost any fabric you should have the face on the inside. With a velvet this is the pile so you have the pile on the inside.

Some, but not all, velvet piles stand straight up others will ‘lay down’. for the former it does not matter which way you then roll the fabric (provided the pile is on the inside). However for typically longer pile which lays down (ie you can brush it flat with your hand in one direction only) then you should roll the fabric down the pile as you return it to its roll.

Hopefully that made sense. Good luck.

Related Articles
Posted on

Contract Upholstery Fabric – How to Specify It

Here is a VERY quick guide to specifying contract fabrics. Contract Fabrics 101 if you like. It shows you the main areas you need to consider.

1. Determine Use

Is it panelling or seating? for the latter you will need to consider flammability (cigarette, match and crib 5) and abrasion (Martindale)

2. Fabric Composition

The composition of the fabric including the yarn and weave will affect the fabric’s long term wear, appearance and technical performance.

Natural fabrics such as wool can be more expensive but generally offer good feel and technical characteristics such as natural flame retardancy.

Man-made fabrics usually are more easily cared for but can look cheap if not properly chosen.

3. Flammability

The single standard for contract seating which is acceptable throughout the EU is EN 1021 Parts 1 and 2 (cigarette and match). Higher level standards in the UK are BS 5852 and BS 7176.

The standard which applies to vertical surface fabrics is BS 476 Part 7.

4. Abrasion

You should be looking at the Martindale properties of the fabric. <Here> is more information on the Martindale rub test.

5. Environmental Considerations

Generally natural fibres like wool are good. And man-made ones less so, NYLON is not great.

6. Care and maintenance

Generally contract fabrics will look bad because of dirt rather than because they wear out. So follow the manufacturers instructions on care and maintenance.  Basically wipe away stains quickly and vacuum clean regularly.

Posted on

What Is BS 476 Part 7 Class 1 ( BS476 )

BS476 Part 7 Class 1 is the FR / Fire Retardancy test for contract wall covering.

In the case of fabric wall coverings, the fabric is held vertically and subjected to a flame. If the rate of spread of any flame falls below a certain level the test is passed.

The test is a severe one. It is appropriate for example, in hotels and offices.

When organising treatment for your fabric ask for it to be treated so that it passes this standard test and inform the treatment company that the fabric will be subsequently tested.

Posted on

What is BS5867 / BS 5867 part 2 type B? type C?

Silk Fabric textile curtain material fr

BS5867 part 2 type B is a contract standard for fire retardancy for CURTAINS.

As an interior designer you do *NOT* need to understand the details of the test nor the performance criteria that needs to be achieved.

However interior designers are responsible for the project/installation and because this is a serious are concerning fire risk you DO NEED to:
– Be certain what standard is required for your project/installation;
– Know that you are specifying fabric that meets the appropriate standard; and
– Prove that the fabric you have installed is up to the job.

So here is what you need to do to achieve that, essentially what you need to do to do your job and to ensure you have covered the bases of your responsibility.

1. Determine the fire retardancy standards that need to be adhered to. This may involve contacting the local fire officer. Determine what documentation you need to provide them.

2. Liaise with your fabric supplier to determine if the fabric either:

– inherently meets the standards; or

– requires treatment.

Click To Read More Interior Design Articles
Click To Read More Interior Design Articles

3. On purchasing the fabric, specify the treatment required. You would say to the fabric company “Treat the fabric to the contract curtain standard BS 5867 part 2 type B, and provide me with documentation showing this has been done”.

4. What you have done now is to specify what standard of treatment has to be undertaken. By doing that there is no guarantee that the fabric will pass the appropriate test even though it has been treated to a standard where it should pass the test. Normally you will receive a document saying that the fabric has been treated to the standard. THIS DOES NOT MEAN IT HAS PASSED THE STANDARD. You need to determine if you want your specific batch of fabric to be specifically tested (after treatment). For larger projects, this will almost certainly be prudent to undertake. You will need to purchase additional fabric prior to treatment and engage the services of a fabric testing factory (not treatment factory). At the end of that process, you will receive documentation stating that the fabric meets the required standard.

Here is related information on fire retardancy for contract upholstery (Crib 5, BS7176 BS5852) and durability of fabric for contract and domestic upholstery. More…

The following test details are not normally required to be known by the designer:

Test method

A sample of the fabric, vertically held, is exposed to a small flame.

For type B (Hotels, etc) the ease of ignition is observed. It is also noted if the flame reaches one any edge of the specimen and/or if any burning pieces of fabric fall down.

For type C (NHS) the fabric is further analysed to see what happens once the flame stops but when the fabric still may be glowing.

NB: The fabric is tested before and after laundering
type B (12 wash cycles at 40°c)
type C (50 wash cycles at 40°c)

Test Performance Criteria

Type B Performance Criteria: The edges must remain completely intact and no burning debris should fall.

Share & Enjoy!

Like This!

Posted on

Mohair Velvet, Silk Velvet: How to upholster using it

Silk Velvet Upholstery Fabric TextileMohair Velvet and Silk Velvet buyers consider this: You have just invested a considerable amount of money in a high quality silk velvet or mohair velvet. Are you really considering upholstering with it yourself. Use an experienced upholsterer who, to be brutally honest, should not need the instructions that follow.

Some velvets are woven with a nap others are not. It is not a problem either way. If there is a nap you need to know which way it goes as that affects the process of upholstering. When you run your hand down the mohair velvet or silk velvet the smoothed direction indicates the direction of the nap. Remember this, it is important.

I’m assuming that you have already checked that the fabric is not damaged and that each piece is from the same dye lot.

The nap should be upholstered downwards for:

– the back;

– the seat; and

– side surfaces.

The nap should be upholstered from the outside inwards for:

– arm rests.

How do you flip your cushions? Top to bottom or left to right?

Most people flip from top to bottom. It is therefore standard upholstering practice to upholster the front and the back the opposite way. IE when they are flipped over the nap is the same.

You should use a layer of wadding between the foam and the fabric. The wadding can be either cotton or synthetic it does not really matter but check with any fire rating requirements. Again check that you are using the right kind of foam but HR foam or cold foam are both fine.

However if the pile is vertical then we advise the additional use of a cotton slip-cover.

Going back to the foam for a minute we advise that you use white wadding. In certain circumstances it is possible that grey wadding will ‘bleed’ causing marks on your beautiful Mohair Velvet. For example this may be caused from moisture used in the cleaning process.

Always use wadding on the arm rests as a protective layer to help eliminate ‘sharp’ edges. Using wadding on arm rests will thus reduce wear and tear considerably.

For the piping never use synthetic piping cord, always use cotton piping cord. As with the arm rests this will reduce wear and tear by eliminating the ‘sharper edges’.

Again to reduce wear and tear also use the length of the fabric to make the piping. this will look better as well.

Happy Upholstering

Posted on

What is Trevira CS Contract Fabric

Trevira CS is a man-made yarn used in many fabrics. It is used to make fabrics usually suitable for many contract applications. The constituent yarn is inherently FR Flame / Fire Resistant.

A clear advantage for the contract interior designer is that the FR Flame / Fire Resistance is an industry known and understood property. There are no further complications, risks and costs involved in fire treatment.

However many Trevira fabrics do not meet the Crib 5 standard and further treatment to reach that standard may be required so you must understand the usage and required FR properties.

It is difficult for many FR treatment companies to treat Trevira to pass Crib 5. There are inherent difficulties with the Trevira yarn that cause this. However it is possible to FR treat it to Crib 5. Please contact us for further information.

Click To Read More Interior Design Articles
Click To Read More Interior Design Articles
Posted on

KOTHEA 2010 Fabric Collections

Finally! Our summer collections have been decided and we will begin to introduce the new designs and colourways throughout the remainder of this year. We have been inundated with new work in the first part of this year causing our blog posts to be curtailed and our ‘spring’ collection to nearly be an autumn/fall collection. Not that we really do seasonal collections in any case.

I will return later in another post to KOTHEA’s awesome sales figures for the financial year just finished. Most surprising, especially considering we are in the midst of a recession. We had our best ever year and by quite a large margin.

We expect some coverage of the new collections in World of Interiors and Elle decoration but, again, more on that at another time.

Where can you see our collections? Well, we are as elusive as ever but we are starting to digitize some images to our flickr feed (click the images on the right or here). The flickr update is ongoing, there is information on flickr now but some of the images are not final and some images do not have full associated descriptions / product details but we are woking on that this week. Our usual clients will receive the new collections in due course starting in late summer; if you need them more urgently for pressing projects of course we will be happy to oblige. Please get in contact in the usual way.

Not all are in production yet but most sampling is available now.

As a very broad summary we have:

1. New colours of several existing ranges including faux leather;

2. More velvets including patterned and crush;

3. Striped, double-width linens;

4. Upholstery weight linen; and

5. A few more interesting one-off designs in limited colourways like the one heading up this blog post.