The living room is undoubtedly the most prominent space in your carefully crafted home. However, every once in a while the dull old furniture needs sprucing up. Introducing upholstery techniques to revive your interiors and breathe some colour into your furnishing scheme.
A big part of the furniture is the cushions that will rest on it, no matter which part of the home it is. Two reasons why they are important: firstly, cushions add warmth to the entire look, be it sofas or comforters or even a foldable chair; secondly, they are the ideal choice for some real comfort. Interior designer Vidhya Sagar shares some great ideologies on the apt use of cushions and upholsteries. “Upholstery will entirely depend on the type of furniture, the style, the colour theme and decor. It has always been a necessity to clad furniture and windows and has assumed an important place as a decor element. Of course, much of it depends on the colour and patterns chosen to compliment the interiors.”
Before you begin
Colours are one of the main components while choosing upholsteries or cushions. However, colour completely depends on the taste and theme of the room. If it’s a living room, space seeks a lot more attention, calling for careful thought before implementation. Secondly, the durability of the fabric is extremely important. Thirdly, patterns play a major role while creating a look out of furniture. However, this will also vary depending on the type of furniture that is being upholstered.
“Above all of this, maintenance matters. If you have children in the house, having a white themed sofa set is inadvisable, as it will surely be bait for stains,” adds Vidhya. If there are budget restrictions there is no worry, as great upholsteries range between Rs.500 to over Rs. 20,000 per metre. However, understanding the budget prior to purchase is important.
Cushions are always used to accentuate the base material and this will automatically fall into place once the base fabric is chosen. For example, if you have a plain sofa, you can accentuate it with bright coloured or printed throw cushions.
Layered drapes
Curtain materials are of two types: the main fabric which is heavier and helps in shutting out the light while adding design and decor value to the room. All rooms should have a main curtain unless you do not require privacy in the room and need it to let in natural light.
Secondly, sheer is a thinner fabric that usually acts as a veil, letting in a lot of light and giving the space a touch of radiance. Most often, the sheer fabric is used behind the main curtain to let in light once the main curtain is drawn back.
Theme it right
Apart from the fact that mixing and matching colours and patterns is tricky, it all boils down to the taste of the person. “If you’re upholstering a curvaceous piece, sticking to solid-coloured fabrics is better as patterns may or may not upholster well. Size of the furniture will also have to be considered,” says Vidhya. “For example, a rich solid colour or classic neutral one is always good so you won’t get tired of it over time. It’s good to liven things up with smaller pieces in patterns or colour, for instance, a boldly patterned occasional chair and patterned or damask throw cushions in brighter colours are great. Always bring back a swatch you can drape over your furniture to get a better idea of how it will look.”
However, everything depends on choice and taste. While some could choose opulent and muted, some could totally go with flamboyant patterns.
Proportioned Furnishing
Vidhya’s word to the wise says is having around 33% open space in a room. “Some people prefer minimalistic decor, which means you may have more than 50 percent of the room empty and some do like it cosy and crowded,” she remarks. “I always encourage devoting quality time to furniture first. Fabric always falls into place once the right furniture is in place.”
Does it suit your wallet?
Blended furnishings like chenille have reasonable price tags, look rich and are durable. “You can put together great window dressing and furnishing fabrics on a budget as well,” Vidhya adds. “The ideal colour combination for any furniture would be beige. Apart from that, other classic colours would be lighter shades of brown and hues of brown-green, khaki or warm greys.”
Landing on the motif
Designs are the trickiest when it comes to choosing upholsteries. There is vintage, there is quirky, there is simple and a lot more choices to choose from. However, here is what Vidhya loves to choose of her upholsteries: “I believe in an eclectic mix and would advocate the same based on individual tastes.”
Shop Smart
Reupholstering your furniture is no piece of cake and it takes in a lot of effort to make it look new and durable for a little longer. However, a lot of fraudulence have been reported while reupholstering. Installation teams are known to take away well-working spare parts and add in the old ones covering them with upholsteries.
Always click few pictures of the places where your furniture holds its weakness and check once it’s back. Make sure you are at the shop to check on the bare furniture before they are sent down for reupholstering. Check the spare before it goes on to your furniture and ask the makers to provide you with warranty for it.
Never frown away from asking as many questions as you want to avoid being cheated upon.
Cushions and upholsteries never run out of trend because there is always an improvement in every generation. The taste changes, the choice and quality changes, however, it always stays relevant, particularly in the domestic arena. These give homes a look, comfort, a feeling of security and most of all the feeling of a pleasant home.
