Looking for fabric suggestions for an ottoman re-upholstery job.

July 10, 2012 11:21 AM

Looking for fabric suggestions for an ottoman re-upholstery job. (Any deals on mohair?)

We have a rather large (50X32) ottoman that we'd like to re-upolster.

We'll do the job ourselves but are on the hunt for nice solid color fabric (maybe a muted blue) that won't break the bank.

Our immediate instinct was mohair, which we love. But we don't love the $140-199/yard prices we've found. Anybody have either a bargain source for mohair or suggestion for other, less expensive fabrics/sources?

posted by donovan to Home & Garden (4 answers total)

Have you tried an imitation mohair fabric? Mohair doesn't wear well if your ottoman will be used often. There are lots of fun fake furry type things too. You can try a throw blanket too (which may be cheaper than buying the fabric from a fabric store.) I would suggest looking at throws that are on sale first. Fabric stores rarely have large upholstery pieces of fabric for cheap. Good luck and have fun!!
posted by Yellow at 11:33 AM on July 10, 2012

You can often sizable remnants of upholstery fabric on eBay. There's some mohair down there at a fraction of the price you mentioned.
posted by jon1270 at 11:44 AM on July 10, 2012

Response by poster: Thanks -- I was clueless as to "faux mohair" . . . I need a full 2 yards so most remants I've seen haven't been big enough. Would love any nods to reputable sellers--I've had pretty negative experiences (fraud!) with eBay so tend to avoid.
posted by donovan at 12:00 PM on July 10, 2012

Modern Fabrics has a lot of beautiful discounted fabric that would be suitable for upholstery, including some mohair. (No blue right now, but their selection changes often.)
posted by firefleet at 10:14 AM on July 11, 2012