A Brief History For British Velvet Chesterfield Sofas

A velvet Chesterfield sofa is basically a type of sofa with buttoned back and arm cushions that are all of the same heights. While a Chesterfield sofa is usually upholstered of leather, a velvet class is upholstered with smooth fabric.

By definition, a velvet features evenly distributed cut threads on tufted woven fabric. The effect is a dense pile that gives the fabric a distinctive smooth feel on it. This is why people often associate velvet to smooth.

The materials in making a velvet feel may be natural fibers as well as synthetic ones. Given these definitions, the velvet Chesterfield sofas are a class of chesterfield sofa that has been upholstered with tufted fabric.

There are many claims on how the name of this kind of sofa has been coined. In England, it is the name that is being used in all davenport type of seats that has arms and backs of the same height. It is also made more distinct with the buttoned leather.

Another origin of this sofa name is Chesterfield’s fourth Earl Phillip Stanhope whom the people honored by commissioning a fine furniture way back in the late 1600s.

In Northern America though, the word Chesterfield to mean sofa of high back and arms has been used during the turn of the century. Whichever is the true origin of this sofa’s name, there are only three things that actually make it distinct among other sofas.

  • Buttoning style – the buttoning style of this sofa is very much different from others. This is designed diagonally so as to create a pattern that will look beautifully. At the same time, this buttoning style is also designed to keep the back of the sofa from sagging and providing the back of users a breathable cushion.
  • Sofa’s shape of back – the sofa’s back is shaped to look like a roll, which is actually very comfortable for those who will be using the seat. And with the buttoning style as it is, the back will be more breathable and thus, the user of the seat will surely have a more comfortable seating stature.
  • Back and arms height – the height of the sofa’s arms and back are the same. This is one of the basic construction distinction that a Chesterfield is supposed to receive. A Davenport in England can easily be classified under Chesterfield if it will receive arms that are in the same height as its back. The buttons on the back part and the shape of that part are additions to the way the seat will eventually look.

While Chesterfield sofas are first known to have leather upholstery, these days the use of fabric and different materials for its buttons is rampant. The velvet Chesterfield sofa is just one of the kinds of fabric materials that are now being used to clothe this seat.

With its evenly distributed piles and tufted woven fabric, the sofa will definitely have a better and softer feel. More importantly, with the right color, this seat will surely look really good.

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