Plush is a short, dense pile cloth woven from mohair on a cotton ground. Mohair is a resilient fibre, so the pile springs back rather than flattening under use, and the surface stays even where a softer pile would mark. The hand is dry and close. It takes colour deeply, which is why the range reads as saturated even in the quieter shades. On a chair it gives you depth without any shine, and that restraint is the point of it.
It is woven from 67 per cent mohair and 33 per cent cotton at a 138 centimetre width, with no repeat. The Martindale figure is 100,000 rubs, severe contract, so it will take a family room without complaint. There are 23 colourways. Pearl, Marble and Sand cover the pale ground; Camel, Hazel and Cumin the warm middle; Moss, Verde and Foresta the greens; Marine, Lapis and Dark Ink the blues. Chocolate and Carnelian are the two we reach for when a room needs an anchor.
We use it on occasional chairs, on the arms and inside back of a deep sofa, and on a buttoned headboard where the pile catches the light differently across the face. A pair of stools in a darker shade will do a lot of work in a sitting room. It pairs well with plain wool, slubby linen and unpolished timber. Order a sample to see it in your own light.
Pile cloth has a direction, so tell your upholsterer which way you want it to run and have every piece cut the same way. We usually run the pile downwards on a seat and a back so it wears smooth and reads darker. Steam rather than press, and keep the cloth off a raw frame edge with a good interlining. Dress seams with a pile brush as the work goes on, and vacuum with a soft head in service.
