Seasonal Slipcover Fabric Guide: Colors, Patterns, Prints and Textures

Posted by the Homeleon Team

Seasonal Slipcover Fabric Guide: Colors, Patterns, Prints and Textures

 

Seasons change, and so does your mood. Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to adapt the ambiance in your home 365 days a year? Get some cozy and festive vibes with green and red plaid when “Baby, it’s cold outside” season is coming? Or get excited about summer with crisp marine stripes?

You may not have thought about it much before, but our everyday well-being depends on textiles. Casual clothing, sport clothing, outerwear, lingerie—you just don’t feel great when dressed inappropriately for an occasion (like a linen top for winter or a down coat for summer). The same holds true for upholstery fabrics and slipcovers! If you pay a little attention to your choices in home textiles as the seasons change, trust us, you’ll amp up your joy and comfort.

“Yes, but redecorating for a family turkey dinner once a year seems a bit costly,” you might say.  Luckily, a sofa cover offers an inexpensive, stress-free answer to your Pinterest wishes. No need to dream about a breezy summer bungalow on a hot summer night, or a snowy chalet for a perfect Christmas night—you can create the perfect atmosphere at home.

The interiors we live in stimulate our senses, thus influencing our psychology and mood. We want to feel safe and in harmony with nature. Choosing to surround ourselves with seasonal details—through careful selections of textures, patterns, and colors—can have a huge impact. 

 

This is the season of soft and thick fabrics, dark and saturated colors, and warm lighting. It’s a time of festive, snug nights (that are also longer than the rest of the year). How to make this cuddling season even better? Choose warming and sumptuous fabrics like:

  • Velour/Velvets
  • Plush
  • Chenille
  • Flannel
  • Pique

These fabrics can be made of a heavyweight polyester/cotton blend, wool, cashmere, alpaca, or even mohair. They’re cozy and—sustainability bonus—their warmth might let you turn down the thermostat a notch.

Also try setting the mood with these wintry color choices:

  • Red and green (making Santa feel at home)
  • White and gold/beige (a perfect choice to honor the Bible)
  • Blue and silver/grey (a classy Narnia-like effect)
  • Deep purple (no upset over some accidentally spilled mulled wine)

And have fun! Try mixing these colors with one another—you might be pleasantly surprised.

 

Spring

spring slipcover

The season of awakening and vibrant signs of life, spring offers exciting color and texture choices. Nights can still be pretty chilly, so fabrics should offer a little warmth. But flowers are also starting to bloom, and we crave something fresh. This is the perfect time to try:

  • Cotton duck
  • Chenille
  • Silk damask
  • Twill

And what better time to try the floral print? Florals have a huge range: abstract, vintage, patchwork, exotic, and more; your couch can become a true artwork. The choices are almost unlimited (but maybe consider staying away from tropical florals for a while; its time will come soon).

Spring colors also become lighter or brighter. For the perfect spring couch cover, consider:

  • Pink (as in tulips and roses)
  • Yellow (as in sunflowers)
  • Coral/Peach (as in peaches)
  • Paler shades of blues and greens

And remember, white is a perfect base for any mix-and-match.

 

Summer

summer slipcover

 

As the weather becomes hotter, vacay season sets in. But if you’ve got your reasons to stay at home (like in Summer 2020), then it’s time to pick out the perfect summer dress!

(Wait, did we just say “summer dress”? Aren’t we going to continue our discussion about slipcovers?) Please welcome a lovely fact from us, slipcover nerds: slipcovers used to be called Summer Dress. It’s believed this name came from New Orleans during the 19th century, when Southerners established an annual housekeeping ritual of introducing cooler textiles, such as white canvas slipcovers, sisal rugs, and sheer curtains, to combat the summer heat. In an era before air-conditioning, there was a real need to cool down seating during hot months. Covers were also used to protect the furniture from sweat, humidity, and direct sunlight.

So what are the perfect fabrics for sweltering summer days? Have a look at:

  • Cotton duck (classic choice)
  • Linen (for a more natural and eco-friendly style)
  • Silk (if you like feeling glamorous)
  • Chenille (still works in warm weather!)
  • Suede (for a Wild West feel)

Striped, geometric, tropical, and marine patterns all rise to the top, making it easy to design a delightful summery space. The color palette is especially exciting; the timing’s perfect for vivid (even neon!) colors, mono-colors, or nude tones alike. Try:

  • White (a must have)
  • Grey, sand, beige (maybe celebrating festival season at home with some fun boho style)
  • Black (we know it’s dark, but it can look sooo good mixed with other summer colors)
  • Bright yellow, bright blue, bright orange, bright green (you get the idea—anything bright!)

 

Fall

fall colors slipcover

 

The trees are yellowing, the leaves are falling, and your Pumpkin Spice Latte is waiting for you around the corner. Fall is a time for slowing down from the buzz and thrill of summer and getting ready for a colder season. It’s also a time for novelty (think Halloween) as well as indulging in your homebody tendencies (think Thanksgiving).

Our favorite all-season choices are especially fitting for fall. These fabrics offer a huge range of looks, and you can find something totally new (for masquerade season) or something familiar and cozy. Try our go-to fabrics:

  • Cotton duck (perfect for loose slipcovers)
  • Chenille (perfect for fitted slipcovers)

The fall color palette is calming yet saturated, and rich, and offers just the right amount of warmth for the cooling weather:

  • Red (avoid lipstick reds and try something more peaceful)
  • Green (consider darker shades, like moss or pine)
  • Brown (it’s not boring if you remember there are fifty shades of brown, including saffron, coffee, cinnamon, caramel, etc.)
  • Yellow (try mixing it with greys and blacks—magnifique!)

 

That’s it for the fabrics, colors and seasons. If you'd like to create a mood of your own, take a look at our slipcovers!

If you’d like a deeper dive into the nitty-gritty of slipcover fabrics, we just have the right post for you on that.

If this inspiration got you wanting to try a slipcover at your place, check out our guide