Velvet is back! It was considered conservative, but now the fluffy pile has made a brilliant comeback

The magnificent fabric of the monarchs

However, its production is – as it was then – a complex process. The basic structure is made up of two layers of fabric, with silk loops woven between them, which are then cut in the middle. The soft pile that is created must not be more than two millimetres high; anything else would be velour; anything over four millimetres is correctly referred to as plush. It is undisputed that velvet was long considered the epitome of a precious fabric – the fabric of kings. It was used in many ways, not just for ceremonial robes, but also in interior design. However, allergy sufferers had to suffer, because the heavy curtain fabrics were also silent dust magnets. But more on that later. With the advent of man-made fibres in the 20th century, however, natural fibres became increasingly less important. Once chic, velvet was soon considered shabby, an old-fashioned fabric that had largely determined the furnishings of our great-grandparents.

The hand-woven silk Soprarizzo velvet “Grottesche” scores with pile wefts on two levels: a high, smooth one and a low, curly one. 6050 euros / meter.

Luigi Bevilacqua

How velvet is now making a comeback

With the modern era came years of ultimate minimalism, but it seems as if we have turned our backs on glass, wood and concrete. Textiles are celebrating a comeback, and finally back with them: the oh-so-bourgeois velvet. Whether as upholstery or curtain fabric or even as an entire wall covering – it now appears with a maximalist touch in strong tones and geometric patterns. Or you can find it, dipped in muted colors, on furniture with a modern silhouette. Because with its light-dark effect it still stands for indescribable elegance. “Velvet has this unique ability to enhance even the most minimalist interior and make it inviting just by looking at it,” emphasizes the Parisian interior designer Laura Gonzalez. And then there’s its feel! While the shimmering fabric is velvety soft in the direction of the grain, it takes on a mysteriously rough side against the grain, like a shaved fur.