cushion cover material advise?

[lisalisa]

hello.

i'm taking on the project of replacing the foam and cushion covers in our 74 boler. after a whole lot of back and forth and up and down in exploring our options, i'm settled on buying the fabric myself (because i'm picky) and having someone make the covers. i'm then going to buy the foam from ikea and cut it with an electric knife. that's the plan (today).

so, my question is about material. it seems to make good sense to get outdoor fabric. is this sound? is it wise to have the bottoms of the cushions done in vinyl? or doesn't that matter so much if the other material is outdoor fabric?

any other words of wisdom regarding thread count or any other aspect of material buying that i have little to no knowledge about?

and while i have your attention...any advice about the foam?

many thanks!!

lisa

[keekers]

Lisa,
The foam will be your biggest expense. I just had my covers only, not the foam replaced with a nice micro-fiber fabric all the way around, no vinyl on the bottom. Luckily I found a fabric store going out of business to get the fabric needed with a little extra. Color kind of matches the new carpeting and the color of my TV.

[Donna D.]

If I was going to change the fabric in my trailer, I'd look at Sunbrella. A number of Escape owners have put Sunbrella upholstery in their new trailers since Reace and Tammy allow owners to completely customize the fabrics.

Glen Raven Sunbrella Fabric - Indoor and Outdoor Canvas, Sold By The Yard

http://tonicliving.com/

http://www.outdoorfabrics.com/

[Carol H]

Lisa it can be the outdoor fabric such as Sunbrella or an upholstery fabric - stay away from fabric with to much cottons as they do not wear well. Arlene's has a lot of good fabrics for the job. No need IMHO to put vinyl on the bottoms - in fact it will restrict you if you ever get a stain on a cushion and you cant get it out - you would not be able to just flip the cushion over.

[SherryNPaul]

If local fabric choices are limited, you can look online. Many vendors offer free or low-cost samples. (I've used winterbeach modern, and several others.) Many offer quality seating fabrics used by major manufacturers like Herman Miller and Knoll, and list the fabric content and double-rub count. Some have a stain-resistant finish, which is a nice plus. As Carol suggested, I'd stay away from cotton, as the organic content mildews more easily. Vinyl on the bottom is unnecessary.
Sherry

[james kent]

The original covers in our trailer had upholstery material on one side and leatherette/vinyl on the other. We reversed them for bad weather days and dogs but omitted that with the new ones. Materials made for the outdoors seem too harsh/stiff for me to be comfortable but what about a good upholstery material and Scotchguard to preserve it from errant spills? Is there a mill ends store in your area? Sometimes you can get up to 75% off.

[Tim Wood]

Originally Posted by Donna D.

If I was going to change the fabric in my trailer, I'd look at Sunbrella. A number of Escape owners have put Sunbrella upholstery in their new trailers since Reace and Tammy allow owners to completely customize the fabrics.

Glen Raven Sunbrella Fabric - Indoor and Outdoor Canvas, Sold By The Yard

Tonic Living - Retro futon covers, retro fabric, pillows, upholstery fabric

OutdoorFabrics.com - Your Online Sunbrella® Fabric Superstore

Good to know Donna, and ParkLiner is starting to use it also.

[Ian G.]

Joan and I just went through the same decision and research, we went with Sunbrella fabric. Shop around for price, our local distributor wanted $69 yard for the material, We bought it on-line for $14 for exactly the same product.
We are also having the cushions made with the Sunbrella top and sides, the bottoms we are using vinyl so that if you are wet from swimming or the kids visit you just flip the cushions to a water resistant easy clean side.

Also research you foam, less expensive foam is usually of lesser quality, talk to the person who is sewing up you cushions. If they are experienced they can provide some advice and maybe even get good quality upholstery foam at a whole rate

[Robin G]

Lisa, You have gotten great info on fabric's and the out door fabric company's have gotten some great prints now.


But I have to ask, is your foam trashed? Because, foam can be very expensive and if it's still got some bounce to it, it can be cleaned and then you only have to replace the cushion cover's.

[Carol H]

Lisa, I forgot to mention that when I talked to the pros about what to use a couple of them suggested that the mirco fiber/ultra suede type material that Patti mentioned was a real good choose as well - washes & wears very well. I actually was going to use it but could not find enough of it in the color I wanted.

[john warren]

think if i was going to do it, mine would be red glitter diamond tufted vinyl,,,that 50's diner look.

[lisalisa]

thank you. thank you. great advise.

robin, the foam definitely does need to be replaced. it's thin, super uncomfortable, it stinks, and it's time for an upgrade. no question. my husband pressed me on this one too. i had him lay down on it for just 5 minutes. i won the debate

it seems people have had a good outcome buying a foam mattress from ikea and cutitng it themselves. this option runs about 300.00 for foam. i'm also getting several quotes from upholsterers. some have an in on foam, some (basement mom & pop's) don't. i'll keep looking and thinking.

i like some of the sunbrella designs. i'm in love with a particular robert allen fabric, but i can't seem to find it here and shipping it internationally is an arm and a leg. i'm headed to fabricana this afternoon for a peek. carol, i went to arlene's (twice) but didn't find anything i loved for less than $50/yard. sigh.... i also looked at the microfiber but couldn't find one i liked. (did i mention i'm really picky??)

i will check out those online stores this afternoon!

i didn't even think of the "flip factor"! i have a 3 year old and a 4 year old! of course i will need to hide a stain!! forget the vinyl backing!

thanks for all the advise. keep it coming. i'm looking forward to showing you a picture of my final product once that magical happy day comes!

[Byron Kinnaman]

If want durable without regard to expense worsted wool. It's what the tour buses use for their seats.

[tdhess]

Hello,
Here's a couple places I like for outdoor fabrics:
Sunbrella : Grommets : Clear Vinyl : Marine Vinyl : Outdoor Fabrics : Seattlefabrics.com
Rockywoods Outdoor Fabrics

[Frederick L. Simson]

Originally Posted by Carol H

- stay away from fabric with to much cottons as they do not wear well.

I used blue-jean denim for my Compact Jr cushions. Simple and inexpensive at WalMart. The fabric is 10 years old now. The trailer sat for 4 years in an Avocado Orchard and the denim is still in good condition.

[Donna D.]

Wearability is also about thread count (denier). Upholstery fabric is made for the friction of sliding across seats (like getting in and out of a vehicle), it doesn't (typically) stretch the threads, nor pill. What you'd sew clothing out of is often not the best for upholstery. If you consider your time as money, using the best you can afford will last longer and you won't be redoing the work time and time again... YMMV

BTW: 100% cotton has a denier of 106. Bullet Pack cloth used for boat cushion upholstery has a denier of 1680. Whether one outlasts the other by a factor of 10, depends on usage, care and UVs

[Carol H]

Originally Posted by Frederick L. Simson

I used blue-jean denim for my Compact Jr cushions. Simple and inexpensive at WalMart. The fabric is 10 years old now. The trailer sat for 4 years in an Avocado Orchard and the denim is still in good condition.

I suspect Frederick that your denim is a bit heavier than many of the other high cotton count home decor materials and probable not subjected to many young children resulting in a need to wash to often

The big issue with using the cottons in home decor is if they have a pattern, with wear, use and washing the pattern will fade off much faster than a material with a low cotton count. In addition cotton material threads tend to wear down faster with used (due to abrasion) than other upholstery material types. Have you ever noticed that on the blue jeans you wear that the material at the knees tends to go thinner & fade faster than other parts of the jeans over time and wear? Its the cotton factor.

[Robin G]

Sorry to hear your foam is toast! But understand that it would be.


As far as fabric, what about using faux leather? Pleather is wipeable and wear's well. It would stand up to many a wet bathing suit, pbj sandwhich's, sippy cup issues, pet's, kids, etc...... Can be found in many color's and then you can use accent fabric's that could easily be thrown in the wash for your "picky" decor. To throw a, throw pillow in the wash after a camping trip is easy compared to cleaning your trailer cushions.


I am sure there are traditionlist that would never venture from the plaid nubby fabric, but there are other options!

[theresa p]

whatever fabric you end up choosing, consider covering your foam with plastic (like a garbage bag)...it will certainly make it a whole lot easier to slide the covers on and off (to launder, if needed) and also makes spot cleaning so much easier.

[Frederick L. Simson]

Originally Posted by Donna D.

Wearability is also about thread count (denier). Upholstery fabric is made for the friction of sliding across seats (like getting in and out of a vehicle), it doesn't (typically) stretch the threads, nor pill.

Wow, I learn something new every day.