Upholstery for furniture.

Upholstery is part of the furniture that is used to sit. Chair, sofa, bench and seat require upholstery to make them to be comfortable when they are used. The upholstery is also used to form the appearance of the furniture to be more beautiful and attractive. The upholstery become the important part for some furniture; it function to make the comfort and at the same time it also built the appearance. As its attached to the furniture, then he has to match with the wood frame.

 furniture upholstery

Generally the upholstery is built from three parts: support, cushion and cover.

1. Support.

Support is the bottom part of the upholstery that holds the whole upholstery and also the person who sits on. There are several types of support can be used, webbing, spring and board. Webbing is a material most widely used. It is made of elastic rubber that is woven to make elastic holder. With proper material and weaving techniques it can provide a flexible yet strong support to the upholstery.

Spring as a support can also be used and will bring the comfort, but it can be considered rather expensive. It is also metal that is risk to hurt when it is broken.

For some design and construction, the wood panel can be used for support. If it used then, the  softer cushion is needed to generate the comfortable.

2. Cushions.

It is the inside part of the upholstery that makes the upholstery is soft, elastic and comfortable to be seated. There are some materials that can be used such as; goose feather, cotton, cloth or burlap. There also some synthetic materials; foam and dacron are used.
Goose feather is very expensive but can be very subtle, natural, safe and soft. It is an expensive material, it should be wrapped in a cloth before placed on as the upholstery.
Kapok is also a natural material that can be used as well. It also should be wrapped in a cloth before installed as cousin. As a natural material he has advantages by providing the natural and comfortable atmosphere.
Foam is a synthetic material, it is the main material for cushion today. It has different density that will give different softness. Foam is available in a wide range of specification and types to fulfill the upholstery requirement. The foam also can be made with some special additive such as fire-resistant, anti-fungal, anti-allergic, etc.

3. Cover

Cover is the visible part of the upholstery. The upholstery cover is not only has to serve the comfort, but also work to form the appearance of the product. Then he must match with the whole furniture set. There are several types of materials can be used; fabric, leather either synthetics or natural, and some natural product such as rattan or bamboo.

•  Fabric.

It is the most widely used material for furniture upholstery. Fabrics are available in lot variety of motifs, colors and quality to meet the models and style of the furniture. It is also available in different standard of quality and specifications. There also some type with texture form that can produce more attractive appearance. As an industrial product, then the fabric can be made in special specifications according to the furniture industry need, for example: fireproof, waterproof or anti fungal anti-allergy, etc.

• Leather.

Leather for upholstery leather is very attractive. It gives the impression expensive and luxury. The leather can also be finished with variety finishing model. Leather with antique finish will bring to the impression of old, unique but expensive, while leather with a clean and neat finish will bring an impression of luxury, elegant and expensive.
There are also synthetics leather available which also nice and interesting. The synthetic leather may have more varied model and color with less expensive than genuine leather. Synthetic leather is available many textured form with variety of colors.

•   Natural substrates.

Natural materials are other option that is no less interesting. The material must be flexible enough and be able to follow the movement of the cushion. Some natural substrates such as: rattan, bamboo wicker can be used. The rattan and bamboo are fairly strong but flexible enough to be used as a cushion.
The natural substrates will provide a cool, comfortable and natural atmosphere.

 upholstery for rattan furniture

Tips in choosing upholstery.
 
 When we buy furniture, the upholstery usually have been installed and become part of the product. But now, there are some furniture companies who give his buyer freedom to choose the upholstery. There are also some furniture shops that can serve upholstery installation. Now and in the future, there will be more freedom to choose the product according to our own tasted including to the upholstery.

 Here are some tips for choosing the upholstery.

•   Consider the safety and healthy.

The upholstery is used for sitting; there will be lot of interaction with our bodies. Therefore, make sure that it is safe and does not create problems to our health. If we have the allergies to certain ingredients, then we should choose materials that do not cause the allergies.
Upholstery should also must safe. If necessary we can find out the construction of the upholstery and make sure it is properly assembled.

• Choose the color and appearance to match with the furniture and room decoration.

The upholstery could be the main part for some furniture. For sofa, or bench, then the furniture appearance is determined by the upholstery, the wood is only the small portion. Then the upholstery needs to match with the room decoration.

• Consider the way to clean and care.

Upholstery can be dirty, dusty or damaged. It also requires a proper caring. When we decide to choose the upholstery, then make sure we know how to care it. Make sure we can do the maintenance and cleaning the upholstery.