GP & J Baker | Salvador

Salvador is a plain velvet from the Rio Velvets collection, a dense, even pile woven for colour and hand rather than for any drawn pattern. The collection takes its name and its mood from Rio de Janeiro, and Salvador carries that warmth in a soft, forgiving pile that reads as rich rather than heavy in a room. It is a genuinely plain velvet rather than a textured or figured one, which makes it an easy cloth to specify without needing to think about repeats or matching.

The composition is 78 per cent viscose, 14 per cent polyester and 8 per cent cotton, a blend chosen to keep the pile supple while adding durability. It is 140 centimetres wide, with a 17 centimetre vertical repeat, and GP & J Baker tested it to 45,000 Martindale rubs, which is rated for upholstery. There is one colourway, Sea Foam, a pale, chalky green that reads as more neutral than its name suggests.

We use it for a sofa or an armchair in daily use, where 45,000 rubs gives real confidence, and for curtains in a room that wants colour with some weight. Pair it with a warm neutral linen or a small stitched pattern, and let the velvet's own texture do most of the work rather than adding a second bold pattern alongside it. Sold by the half metre; order a sample to see it in your own light.

Velvet needs pile direction respected throughout a piece: brief your upholsterer to cut all sections the same way, and expect some extra wastage compared with a flat weave. For curtains, line and interline, and have the finished curtains steamed rather than pressed. At 45,000 rubs it is a strong choice for a family sofa.

• Composition: 8% cotton, 78% viscose, 14% polyester
• Width: 140 cm (55 in)
• Pattern repeat: 17 cm vertical
• Abrasion resistance: 45,000 rubs (Martindale)
• Suitable for: Upholstery, Curtains
• Care: Dry clean professionally; do not wash, bleach or iron.
• Collection: Rio, GP & J Baker
• Colourways: 1 (Sea Foam)