I love my dogs. I also love nice furniture. Alas, I was convinced we couldn’t all live together.
All day, while I work in my home office trying to turn my problems into your solutions, my two bichon frisés, Theo and Oliver, snooze on the large, off-white linen chair in the corner. Although they’re petite, phoofy dogs, when they sleep, they drool like St. Bernards. When nature calls, they let themselves out the doggy door, then return to wipe their dirty paws on the chair. I’ve told them to use the doormat, but they ignore me.
Off-white linen is not the best chair fabric for a newspaper writer with two dogs and a coffee habit. Adding to this chair’s abuse, somebody once briefly set food on the back of it, which left a scent so compelling the dogs licked the spot until they’d formed a football-sized hole in the fabric. As the chair became a mottled collage invoking every imaginable shade of filth, the layers of soil compressed.
I faced it: This was no longer a chair; it was an archaeological dig. I tossed a large woven throw over it and tried to forget. But underneath, this was a good chair, well-made and comfortable. We had a past together and, I hoped, a future. I could no more set this chair on the curb than sell my eyeballs. Besides, what would I tell Theo and Oliver? I would slipcover it, I decided.
My first instinct was to cover the chair with another linen. After all, what is life if not a series of repeated mistakes? But a stern fabric store manager rescued me from myself.
“No you don’t,” she said. “From what you’ve told me about your dogs, you need a synthetic.”
“How about sturdy cotton?”
“Nope,” she said in that tough-love tone.
“What do you have in Teflon?”
Back home I did some research and found a fabric called Crypton, which reminded me of the stuff stronger than Superman. “Our fabric resists spills, stains, mold, mildew, bacteria and odors,” the website bragged. Sure, I thought. The stuff probably feels like Astroturf. I ordered samples, which, though they didn’t feel like linen, were softer than I expected. I spread the samples on my desk, scribbled on them with marker, poured cooking oil, coffee and red wine on them, and ground it all in. This was fun, until my 12-year-old busted me.
“What are you doing?” she asked, horrified.
“Uhh, research?”
“If I did that, you’d ground me for life.”
“Here,” I said, handing her a marker. “Get it out of your system.”
Water and dish soap did indeed release the stains. Plus, the fabric didn’t look rubbed- out after the scrubbing, and it dried without a water ring.
So now I had a dilemma: I’m a purist who loves natural fabrics. I’m also a pragmatist who doesn’t want to pay to recover this chair again. Was my purity worth trading?
I called an expert. Warren De Young, president of Kenneth McDonald Designs in Costa Mesa, Calif., a leading supplier of interior fabrics to the trade. He reassured me.
“We’ve seen a major industry shift toward using acrylic and other synthetic fabrics indoors,” he said. “These fabrics used to go only on outdoor furniture or in commercial settings, but more are coming into homes because they’re so much softer, and wear so well.”
Tips for choosing furniture covers
Fabric industry insider Warren De Young shared a few tips for choosing furniture covers. Before selecting a color or pattern, he suggested first picking your material. Determine how much use and sun exposure the piece will get, then consider this durability chart.
Fragile. Silks and soft linens (such as Belgian linen) are lovely, but delicate. Save these for adult homes with no pets, and put them in rarely used living areas, or use them for drapes.
Semi-fragile. Chenille feels lovely, which is why it accounts for half of all interior fabrics sold, says De Young. But some chenilles have a loop stitch, which jewelry or pet claws can easily snag. Cut chenille doesn’t have the loop stitch, so it may be more practical.
Durable. Cotton, heavier linens (such as Irish linen), cotton blends, cotton prints, denim and velvet are sturdy and family-friendly.
Tough. Synthetic fabrics (polyester, acrylic, synthetic blends) are the go-ahead-and-beat-me fabrics of the upholstery industry. All the fabrics mentioned above – silk, linen, chenille, cotton and also suede – have a synthetic counterpart. These will be more durable, more fade-resistant and less expensive than a similar all-natural fabric. Leather is also a fabulous, rugged choice, and often looks better with age. “It’s as durable as a cow in the rain,” De Young says. The only thing it won’t tolerate is a puncture.
Indestructible. Power fabrics, like Crypton (now available at Jo-Ann Super Stores), have been used commercially for years and are now showing up more in residential design. In the end, that’s what I chose to slipcover the chair. It may not be right for every home, but it’s right for mine, and for any other home that’s gone to the dogs.
Marni Jameson is a nationally syndicated columnist who lives in the Denver area. You may contact her through .
