Ultimate guide to high-end upholstery fabrics: brands, materials & exceptional craftsmanship
Upholstery fabrics embody the soul of an interior. Whether you’re aiming for the warmth of a quiet luxury atmosphere or the energy of a bold, colour-forward scheme, fabrics offer infinite decorative possibilities. From historic Lyon manufacturers like Prelle to contemporary Italian ateliers, from raw silks to architectural velvets, each fabric tells a story of craftsmanship and innovation.
This guide brings together the fundamentals of textile excellence: must-know fabric houses, noble materials, resistance and performance criteria, care routines, and harmonious combinations for durable, ultra-refined interiors.
Essential high-end upholstery fabric brands
Rubelli, Dedar, Designers Guild, Pierre Frey, Lelièvre, Zimmer + Rohde: these houses embody global textile excellence. Rubelli has perpetuated the art of Venetian jacquard weaving on historic looms since 1889. Dedar Milano pushes boundaries with sculpted velvets and innovative fibre blends. Pierre Frey draws from over 5,000 archive documents to create sublime re-editions. Designers Guild orchestrates more than 2,000 references with distinctly British chromatic flair. Zimmer + Rohde and JAB Anstoetz combine high performance with refined aesthetics for the most demanding residential and contract projects.
→ Dive deeper into our curated selection of must-know high-end upholstery fabric brands.
Martindale test: understanding textile resistance
The Martindale test measures abrasion resistance through repeated circular rubbing until visible deterioration appears. Understanding these ratings helps you specify the right fabric for each context: around 10,000–15,000 rubs for occasional domestic use, 25,000–30,000 for intense family life, 40,000–100,000 for hospitality and public spaces.
Beyond the raw number, intrinsic quality matters: weave density, fibre nature, thread fineness. A dense cotton velvet rated at 30,000 rubs will age more gracefully than a loosely woven polyester at 50,000. Wool bouclés, mohair velvets and tight jacquards naturally offer excellent performance while retaining their noble appearance.
→ Find all the practical benchmarks in our complete Martindale rub test guide.
Upholstery fabric care secrets
Each material comes with its own care rituals. Silk requires professional dry cleaning only. Velvet should be brushed delicately in the direction of the pile to revive its depth. Linen can be washed but must dry flat to retain its structure. Bouclés need regular vacuuming and swift, targeted stain removal.
When a stain appears, always dab, never rub, working from the outside in with a clean white cloth. Sun protection is essential: sheer blinds, layered curtains or seasonal cushion rotation help protect colours. Weekly vacuuming removes abrasive dust before it damages the fibres. These simple gestures ensure longevity and help your textiles develop a beautiful, noble patina.
→ All the key steps are detailed in our practical upholstery fabric care guide.
Polypropylene outdoor fabrics: performance and aesthetics
Solution-dyed polypropylene is reshaping the world of outdoor textiles: outstanding resistance to UV rays, humidity, mould and chlorine, combined with ever more sophisticated looks. Colour is locked into the core of the fibre at production stage, ensuring exceptional chromatic stability even after years of exposure.
Brands like Sunbrella, Batyline and Dickson now offer velvets with a silky touch, faux-linens almost indistinguishable from the real thing, and technical wool-like bouclés. These fabrics clean easily with soapy water, dry quickly and retain neither water nor odours. Their mechanical performance also makes them ideal for indoor contract use: restaurants, hotels, public spaces. The line between indoors and outdoors is definitively blurred.
→ Explore all the details in our focus on polypropylene outdoor fabrics.
Luxury trimmings: the art of detail
Trimmings sign the quality of an interior through those details that change everything: contrasting piping outlining silhouettes, hand-embroidered braids along curtain edges, artisanal fringes animating cushions, decorative nails punctuating chair backs. Houses like Houlès, Declercq Passementiers and Samuel & Sons perpetuate ancestral savoir-faire while developing very contemporary collections.
The codes are precise: contrasting piping brings graphic rhythm, tone-on-tone braids add discreet sophistication, bullion fringes create sensual movement. The play of textures – matte versus shiny, smooth versus bouclé – enriches the decor without weighing it down. Beyond aesthetics, trimmings protect edges, reinforce seams and conceal junctions. They are the final gesture that elevates a piece from “well-made” to truly exceptional.
→ Read our complete guide to luxury trimmings in contemporary interior design.
Noble materials: silks, velvets, bouclés & precious linens
Materials define both the character and longevity of an interior. Silk, with its shifting reflections and incomparable luminosity, is ideal for curtains and decorative cushions. Cotton velvets offer exceptional tactile depth, while mohair velvets capture light with unique sculptural intensity. Wool bouclés structure space and hold up remarkably well under intensive use.
Belgian washed linen develops an incomparable suppleness and ages beautifully over time. Natural hemp, thermoregulating and naturally antibacterial, embodies a responsible, contemporary idea of luxury. Extra-fine merino wools combine softness and resilience. Each fibre carries intrinsic qualities that transcend trends and allow you to compose timeless interiors destined to develop a beautiful patina.
→ Discover the noble materials guide (coming soon)
Materials and pattern association guide
Composing a harmonious textile palette follows the rule of thirds: 60% of dominant neutral or textured fabric for the visual base, 30% of secondary fabric in tonal or monochrome harmony to create transitions, 10% of accent fabric – coloured or patterned – for the signature. Patterns are layered by scale: large florals at the windows, medium geometrics on seating, small motifs on cushions.
Colour harmonies can be built through analogy, tonal variation or controlled contrast. Trims – piping, braids, fringes – act as a visual through-line. A palette limited to five to seven carefully chosen fabrics creates sophisticated coherence, far from the “catalogue” effect. This orchestration reveals as much about the inhabitants’ personality as it does about the decorator’s eye.
→ Explore the association guide (coming soon)
Textile innovation and technical performance
Today’s textile excellence combines refined aesthetics with advanced technical performance. Nanotechnology-based stain-repellent treatments preserve original beauty without stiffening the hand of the fabric. Water-repellent finishes protect silks and velvets from everyday mishaps. UV-resistant treatments extend colour intensity. Fire-retardant textiles that meet hospitality standards ensure maximum safety without sacrificing comfort.
The latest generations of fabrics integrate antibacterial, hypoallergenic, thermoregulating or acoustic properties. In parallel, dyeing processes are evolving towards solutions that are more economical in water and energy. This silent revolution raises the bar for durability and responsibility, without ever compromising the elegance and sensorial richness that define truly exceptional upholstery fabrics.
→ Discover technical innovations (coming soon)
