Fabric Guide: Ways to use Safomasi Fabrics
Our illustrated fabrics add instant colour and character to any interior and can be used for a wide range of projects including upholstery, curtains, blinds and soft furnishings. With their strong narrative our bold, statement fabrics could be used as the starting point for a scheme with colours reflected in other elements of the room. Even in a small area, perhaps on a bench or blind, our designs bring a unique touch and are the perfect way to reflect your personality in your home through playful print and pattern.
Upholstery
One of the most exciting ways to use our interior fabrics is for upholstery. A patterned headboard can make a brilliant focal point in your bedroom, an armchair with a joyful print becomes a special place to sit. Chair pads or the back of dining chairs are another easy way to bring a pop of colour into your home. An upholstered ottoman or footstool is another fun way to use our fabrics, and of course if you want to go all out you can upholster your sofa like we’ve done in the image below with our Grey Peace Hands Woven Cotton Fabric.
Scroll down to see a sofa upholstered in our Blue Golf Course Cotton Linen.
All of our fabrics are 100% natural fibres. Some have cigarette tests but most are Not Rated, so you should consult with your upholsterer who can advise if a FR treatment or an FR interliner is required.
Curtains & Blinds
Printed curtains or blinds are a great place to have fun with fabrics and can bring the whole room to life. Your curtain or blind maker will be able to help you measure up and advise how much fabric you need depending on the style of window treatments you’d like.
We always recommend using a good quality lining for curtains. Curtain lining can come in various levels of opacity from blackout to more sheer and helps to control the amount of light, protect your fabric from excessive fading and aides with drape and fall. It can usually be provided by your curtain maker. Our woven cottons are heavy enough to be used without, however you may choose to use one anyway for the reasons above.
Soft Furnishings
Our fabrics can be used for all kinds of interior soft furnishings such as cushions, pillows, bolsters and loose covers. We offer a bespoke soft furnishing service, so if you have anything you’d like made just let us know the dimensions and specifications and we’d be happy to give you a quote.
Things to consider when choosing your fabric
Pattern repeat
This refers to the size of the design that is repeated across the width and length of the fabric. Many of our designs have a fairly large repeat, so if you are making something where the fabric will need to be joined, you will need to consider the repeat in conjunction with the fabric width to make sure you order enough fabric for the pattern to match at the join. Don’t worry, your maker or upholsterer will be able to advise on all this!
Martindale
This is a fabric abrasion test undertaken by oscillating discs rubbing against fabric until it starts to show signs of wear. The Martindale rub count gives an insight into the durability of the fabric and its suitability for different uses and the higher the number, the more use it can withstand.
What does the Martindale number mean?
Less than 10,000
Decorative: This fabric is suitable for decorative cushions, curtains, blinds and soft furnishings.
10,000 - 15,000
Light Domestic: Suitable for use on occasional domestic furniture that you will use less frequently.
15,000 - 25,000
Domestic furniture in everyday use: This fabric is for items that will be in regular daily use.
25,000 - 30,000
Heavy domestic use: For furniture that is in constant daily use.
30,000 + Commercial
Heavy duty use in a commercial setting.
For each of our fabric listings you can check the product details to see the fabric martindale count. For reference, our cotton linen 395 gsm base fabric has a Martindale of 30,000 rubs, our 275 gsm base fabric has a Martindale of 20,000, whilst our Woven cotton fabrics have 12,000. Our 230 gsm base fabric has not been tested so we recommend it for light domestic use only.
Shop our range of Interior fabrics online, or for any help or advise in choosing the right fabric just get in touch or fill in the form on our Design Advice page.