Re-upholstering Settee

We are trying to decide which upholstery fabrics to use on our settee. The upholsterer says figure 16 yards of fabric so we need to choose the right cloth.
Sun-brella and micro-fiber has been recommended, we are wondering if anyone has re-upholstered, how the fabric is holding up, and lessens learned.
Thanks

I haven't done a lot of upholstery but have bought some materials from these suppliers and have been pleased.
You can find some bargains to consider on both sites

My experience is Sunbrella is much pricier than similar fabrics that wear as well - maybe not the assortment of patterns but look at other materials.
It's interior so you need to decide whether you want / need protection from moisture / wet suits etc or not - if not many good upholstery fabrics might work. Microfiber looks great and wears & cleans well.

Rockford Supply

TOTO Fabrics

We did very extensive reupholstery on our Hatteras 56MY using Sunbrella and Sunbrella-like upholstery fabrics, interior and exterior... virtually every upholstered item on the boat. Like many things, the quality of the work itself is every bit as important as the fabric. We lived aboard full time for several of those years and used the boat and entertained extensively for a few more.

Both of us were delighted with the choice. Ann for the look and feel, me for the stain resistance and ease of cleaning. Good fire retardant properties as well, which through my own stupidity inadvertently put to the test once with a halogen lamp.

HiDHo said:

We are trying to decide which upholstery fabrics to use on our settee. The upholsterer says figure 16 yards of fabric so we need to choose the right cloth.
Sun-brella and micro-fiber has been recommended, we are wondering if anyone has re-upholstered, how the fabric is holding up, and lessens learned.
Thanks

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What ever you choose in my mind needs to be washable/cleanable. Does micro fibre qualify?

Yes micro fiber is very washable. I have reupholstered many items in micro fiber and I much prefer it over sunbrella when the piece is indoors. Sunbrella can feel a bit too "outdoorsy" if you know what I mean.
I think anywhere in a boat that leather or vinyl was used you could use microfiber easily.
Plus I think it should be about half ( or even less) the price of sunbrella

Microfiber gets my vote.

Bought a click-klack couch that fit perfectly, covered with microfiber.

As a liveaboard with a dog lying against it and a crew that uses it 24/7...it remains unstained even by red wine or anything else, and is wearing like iron.

Looks new after 5 years.

We have re-upholstered two different boats...

The first time we went with new foam and microfiber fabric with vinyl bottoms. Loved the fabric, the foam was way too firm and uncomfortable.

The second time we went with standard upholstery fabric with vinyl bottoms, and kept the original foam. This time it was much more comfortable, and any soft spots are firmed up with batting.

If we do it again (a project I'm not afraid of tackling again), I'd go with microfiber. If I need to replace the foam, I'd be a bit more particular about the density.

we had all our saloon and wheelhouse house squabs recovered in microfiber (indigo) about two years ago and are very happy with the result. The fabric is comfortable, hard-wearing, washable (we just use Spray and Wipe) and seems to be fairly fade resistant. The previous fabric faded and broke down in the sunlight particularly in the wheelhouse where the windows are not tinted. We now have covers for the top edges when the boat is on the marina. Strongly recommend microfiber.

Interesting. We replaced microfiber in several places.

I'm a microfiber fan. Cleans easily and feels good.

Thanks everyone, we checked out a friends settee they had re-upholstered in micro fiber and think that will be our choice. They also commented about how easy it cleans ( spilt wine) and it's comfy feel.

So where is everyone purchasing their microfibre? What kind of brand names should I be looking for?

Northern Spy said:

So where is everyone purchasing their microfibre? What kind of brand names should I be looking for?

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We just bought ours at JoAnnes fabric. Just the basic stuff, and then Scotchguard'd it when we were done.

Northern Spy said:

So where is everyone purchasing their microfibre? What kind of brand names should I be looking for?

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For an extensive presentation of available fabrics for all applications, request the 3/8" thick Sailrite catalog. I was amazed at how extensive their offerings were.
Good to have if only for reference..(for instance I discovered my 12yr old cockpit cover was a material called Weblon Regatta which I'd not heard of..)

Northern Spy said:

So where is everyone purchasing their microfibre? What kind of brand names should I be looking for?

Click to expand...

Try the Toto link I posted above for upholstery material and Rockford for "canvas" / Sunbrella or equivalents or mesh. I've had good luck w/ both.

Rockford frequently has 2nds very reasonable and little in the way of defects... great way to get goinf w/ that new machine of yours

Northern Spy, we found our Micro-fiber suede at a local fabric store. No brand name / mfg on the bolt or backing.

This is what ours looks like, for reference it was $13.99 a yard. Upholsterer gets it next week, I'll post photos of the finished settee when it completed.

I think a lot of people think of SunBrella in terms of the canvas used for bimini tops and boat covers or exterior seating. They (and their competition) also produce softer fine fabrics for interior use. Such as the chair to the left as well as the sofa in this pic:



Or the backs of the dinette seats and soffette above the wind in this:



People were always surprised when we told them what it was.

From pics and comments, what is termed "microfiber" seems like "alacantra" sold here, which I call "fake suede". We reupholstered with it in a mid-dark green textured fabric, about 5 years ago, it wears well and looks near new.

One of my favorite sources for microfiber or ultra suede (which is a thicker, pricier cousin) is Fabric Guru ( they are also a great source for Sunbrella and canvas)
Microfiber Suedecloth Upholstery Fabric - Discount Microfiber Suedecloth Upholstery Fabric - FabricGuru.com

Just got the settee cushion back from the upholsterer. Now we can again have dinner for eight in style !

Beautiful! Love that color! And that was very fast work.

How many yards did it end up taking? The Admiral is contemplating this over the winter season. Also - did you reuse the foam?

mike

16 yards, the seat cushions where reused, the backs had fiber fill and could not be reused

That is some skills!

I see you don't have a built in table. What do you use?

We have the standard Manatee table with the two fold out leafs. It is mounted on a base that has felt pads so we can move it or position it several different ways. I guess it's just another " once you've seen one Manatee---------------"

"Mounted on a base" genius! We don't have that one, but mounting the one we have on a base so we can move it around as needed could be an option. Thanks for the picture.