Indestructible Fabric? Maybe Not, But Pretty Darn Close!

Almost a year ago, I found some fabulous chairs at my favorite local thrift (which is now closed…boo!). You may remember the chairs. They look like this:

And yes…sadly, almost a year later, they still look like that. I have wrestled back and forth with what exactly I want to do with them, and what fabric(s) I want to use on them. I love the shape of these chairs, and I really love the button-tufted backs, so whatever I select needs to accent those features. I just don’t want to mess them up!!

Then one day about a month or so ago, I was came across this picture online:

This was it! This is what I want my chairs to look like. Apple green as the main color, with the trim and buttons in blue-green. Fantastic!

Now on to the chore of finding the perfect fabric. Do I want a velvet-type fabric? Ooh la la! Or chenille? So luxurious! Or maybe a linen? I love linen! But here’s the deal. I live with three animals. (Well, four, if I count Matt.) 🙂 So I need a fabric that will really stand up to the wear and tear it will get, and unfortunately, none of those fabrics meet the requirements.

Then I found the fabric. I mean THEEEE FABRIC! Have you ever heard of the Wyzenbeek method? Well, it’s a way of rating the durability of decorator/upholstery fabrics, and they test this by putting a sample of the fabric in a machine that applies back and forth lateral rubs on the fabric to determine how many double rubs the fabric can withstand before showing wear. The average rating is 15,000, meaning it takes 15,000 back and forth rubs before the fabric shows wear. Fabrics that withstand 30,000 double rubs are rated “heavy duty.” Well, I came across a fabric that had a rating I’ve honestely never seen before.

Can you see that?! Exceeds 234,000 double rubs! 234,000!!! Now I know there are others that come close. For example, ultrasuede generally has a rating around 200,000, but I’m just not that big of a fan of ultrasuede. I don’t like the way it changes color when you rub you hand across the surface–kind of like carpet after being vacuumed, where the pile has been pushed in different directions. I don’t like that at all. But this fabric doesn’t do that! It’s gorgeous!

I love how it has the slight variations in the threads, almost like high quality linen does. And it comes in 30 different colors!!

So, this is it. The decision has been made, and now it goes on the “to do” list. Oh, sure…probably #75 or so. But at least I have direction now for those sad little chairs!

And if any of you are interested in this fabric for your own project, the retail price is $35.90/yard (which is a great price for such quality!), and I would happily give a 20% discount to any of my blog readers. Just shoot me an e-mail (addicted2decorating [at] live [dot] com), mention the fabric, the discount, and the color(s) you’re thinking about, and I’ll order up some samples for you.

Well, I hope each of you has a wonderfully relaxing weekend! I wish I could see you back here on Monday with a great progress report on my cabinets or other projects, but I really need to get some things done for clients this weekend. We’ll see how it works out. Who knows…maybe this weekend, my super woman powers will actually kick in! Ha…yeah, right!

Have a great weekend, and I’ll see you back here on Monday!

And by the way…I have no idea where I got the photo of the green chair above. If anyone recognizes it, can you leave a comment below and let me know where it’s from so I can give proper credit? Thanks!!

Add to: Facebook | Twitter | Digg | Del.icio.us | Stumbleupon | Reddit | Blinklist | Technorati | Yahoo Buzz | Newsvine