Reupholstering: What Material ?

[MarkJ]

Hi Folks:

One tip!

Buy the rest of the roll of fabric!!!!!

We have a few spare meters of our fabric stuffed in the aft cabin just in case we destroy a cushion

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by unbusted67

isn't ultrasuede suedelike? I am looking for something more like canvas.

Ultrasuede (otherwise known as Alacantra) is one good choice. It looks more like cloth than leather notwithstanding the name. It was fitted to our boat from new and ten years later still looks like new and smells fresh. It is completely synthetic so not prone to mildew or rot. It is pleasant to the touch and hard to believe it is synthetic. Great stuff.

[Moondance38]

We're also gathering info on new interior cushions. Does anyone have experience with faux suede made from nylon? Also, I'm leaning towards foam for the v-berth with a memory foam layer. What thickness should I use?

[jackiepitts]

Our boat came with a leather settee in the salon when we purchased it. Over the 5+ years of owning the boat the leather took quite a beating and more than once I cursed having leather. I finally decided to look into restoring it since the cost of re-doing the cushions would be out of control. We found a leather factory here in Mazatlan that did the whole restoration for $130 and I have to say I was shocked at how well it came out (see before/after photos below).
Still I could not recommend leather as a first choice as salt air/water is not kind to it.
I am not sure if you could restore faux suede/leather like you can the real stuff but if so I think that would be the best way to go.

[harmony80]

Canvas can stain but it can also be cleaned and it is durable. Ultrasuede is easily cleaned and is pet and child friendly, and is ultra comfortable, but there are about three qualities so if you are looking for long-term pick a durable one. Otherwise just pick the one you like best if it is your boat. And with all this great advice, The worst mistake you could possibly make would be to tell your next girlfriend that a previous girlfriend decorated your boat.

[KevinE]

We redid ours with an ultraleather knockoff from paylessfabrics.com. Paid $12/yd I think which is about 1/5 of what real ultraleather sells for. Before we committed, we ordered sample swatches and did stain testing with ketchup, mustard, red wine - we couldn't stain it. We did spill some melted butter on the finished product which did leave a bit of a stain.

The texture of the material was exactly what we were looking for - something in between a leather and a suede that was comfortable to sit on in hot or cold. Not as touch as say sunbrella so you have to treat it accordingly but overall we were very happy with the product. We did every cushion in our Hunter 375 for under $3000 (including fore berth and both settee's in the main salon and new seat foam - a substantial amount of work). We found a furniture upholstery place that was happy to use the material we purchased over the internet and saved a bundle. Probably would have been another $2k going to a boat place...

-k-