Fabrics 101

What do the codes mean on fabrics?

When you are shopping for furniture, and you are given hundreds of fabric options, what should you be looking for other than colour? On the back of every fabric swatch, there will be the name and colour, as well as a slew of letters and numbers that may look like gibberish. Well, here is your guide to the fabric label:

Fabric Content:

Polyester:  It may not be our favourite word to see on a clothing label, but for furniture, it screams EASY! Polyester is the easiest fabric to care for, and there is such a variety of textures made from Polyester. Also, you will be looking at a great price point.

Cotton: A Natural Fibre, quite durable, but more maintenance for cleaning. Sometimes it can stretch (unlike polyesters), however, it can give a beautiful linen look, have more texture, and it takes colour well.

Acrylic, Viscose: A man-made fabric. Viscose is durable but hard to clean, perhaps avoid using on larger upholstered items. However, it makes some great look-a-likes, like silk, that can be used for pillows, and for a fraction of the price.

Silk: We all know silk...Delicate and pricey, but beautiful. Make sure if you are using it, especially for window coverings, it is well lined, because the sun can eat right through it. 

Rub Counts:

The Rub count tells you how much normal wear a fabric can handle before it shows. The number indicates how many times it can be rubbed, in other words, sat on. Rub counts will be labelled either as “Abrasion”, or just a number, typically in the thousands. IE, 30,000 DR. What does the DR stand for? Double Rubs.We have yet to figure out why they don’t just multiply the number by 2 and leave it at that, but hey, it is what it is.

We carry fabrics that range from 15,000 to 200,000 DR.

Cleaning Code:

There are different cleaning codes that come along with different fabrics. Here’s what they mean:

W: Water Based Cleaners. Spot clean using the foam from a water based cleaner such as a mild detergent, or non-solvent upholstery shampoos.

S: Solvent or Dry Cleaning Products. Spot clean using a mild water-free solvent or dry cleaning product.

W.S: Solvent and/or Water Based Cleaners. Both W and S cleaning tips will work

X: Vacuum or Brush Only.

These are some of our fabrics we have available at Condobox!

Read the entire label, there may be some other notes on there about the unique fabric. You can also find information about if it is eco-friendly, stain resistant, good for outdoor use, etc. If you don’t know what it means, don’t hesitate to ask!