The Upholstery Forum

Did anybody use this on seats? If so, I have couple questions:

1. What is your go to brand?
2. Does it hold pretty good? I know they use it in cars, but.. Better then leather/vinyl? Worse?
3. How easy is that to sew compare to leather/vinyl?
4. In what direction to put it on seats? On A-B-C pillars I put it grain "down" and on headliner/back shelf grain "back"

I bought some Ultrasuede(R) Toray on eBay at very good price, my research shows that it's just as good as Alcantara (R)

I recovered headliner (pain) and all pillars with this material. Now I want to use it as seat centers but hesitating...
I like how it feels though. PITA to stretch on headliner(you see some wrinkles on sunroof edge)..

I wouldn’t be worried about those little wrinkles esp for just starting out. I still struggle with headliners lol. I think for seat isn’t it from Back to front on the lower cushion and top down on the back cushion? As far as longevity I have no clue. I had it in a truck once and it didn’t last as long as the material it was sewn to, but it was also on a high impact area of the seat.

@IvanD ,

Your project is looking really good! If this were my project I think I would use the exact same material you did your headliner in for the inserts and bring that whole look all together. What do you think about that? Now in my area your arse is either going to freeze in the winter so that Ultrasuede would be a great choice or it is going to sweat in the summer again making it a good choice. Go with it man!

Yes, this is exactly why I think about doing it:
1. I got this material for very good price
2. It get's hot here in STL, I hate leather seats. Middle inserts make sense.
3. All doors/top already have it.

Now that I'm getting sewing machine I kind of think about doing centers in diamond pattern. Then, I will have to redo door inserts to match :)


Completely recovered door panels (vinyl/insert). Not without issues, but came out great!

@IvanD ,

Diamonds are pretty busy, that interior really looks good with those pleats and would look wicked with larger squares @ John

BigRig wrote:@IvanD ,

Diamonds are pretty busy, that interior really looks good with those pleats and would look wicked with larger squares @ John

Not sure how to make those pleats myself.. And what do you mean by "larger sqares"? Do you have examples?

I kind of like diamonds on seats but thinking about it for this particular car it migt be too much. Good practice piece though :)

I use synergy suede for lower cost jobs and ultra suede for that higher end jobs.

Suede is really durable for seats. You need to make sure you get it with a backing though. The stuff for headliners is unbacked so that it can stretch.

I dont know that you can really compare ultra suede and Alcantara. Alcantera is just so different than other suedes. Plus its super expensive.

You can lay the suede down any direction you want. The important thing is to lay it down on every panel in the same direction or else you will have color difference. I always lay it down to the back of the car just to stay consistent.

Also I dont recommend buying fabric on eBay. Lots of fake brands on there and you don't know what your getting.

John wrote:I dont know that you can really compare ultra suede and Alcantara. Alcantera is just so different than other suedes. Plus its super expensive.

Also I dont recommend buying fabric on eBay. Lots of fake brands on there and you don't know what your getting.

@John
I was referring to Ultrasuede brand. They go by "Ultrasuede Toray" brand. Or, today, Ultrasuede Ambiance HP
On eBay people sell remnants, odd lots/sizes. I ordered samples from reseller and yes, it's expensive stuff, almost as much as Alcantara. But on eBay I searched by color/brand and found what I need! Not always and you need to know color code. Obviously it doesn't work for you when customer pick's color and you need your 5 yards whatever... But worked for me. Material was exactly as on sample. Don't see a reason for US seller to lie about it..

I also read a story about Alcantara brand being produces in Italy and both Toray and Alcantara started from a same roots, but UltraSuede being US made.

Material I got does not have backing, but it's thick as leathe, thicker than Alcantara sample I had. Alcantara felt more ridgid, more compressed. With smaller "hair". Stuff I got has almost no stretch to it...

@IvanD

John brings up a good point about counterfeit textiles. Do some research and you will be able to find a Alcantara plant producing it in China.

@BigRig
Looking into the Ultrasuede Hp which I think is for automotive upholstery and it is really expensive 95.00 to 110.00 a yard Is this right or am I just off of the path again Where do you get Ultrasuede from ?

@hapyrdr ,

I think you should look at the synergy suede. Its for your own ride right? How many years are you looking to put into the double rubs of the fabric? You are paying way to much for your fabrics. @torriec can you help our buddy hapyrdr out?

I just got some samples of the synergy suede and it looks super cheap. Doesn't look like me suede used on my corbeau seats at all.

@stealthmode93

You are happier with the ebay suede you got?

I didn't get any suede from ebay. My friend is using suede from ebay in his car. I am going to the upholstery shop that did my seats and get material from them.

The suede on your corbeau seats is a much higher end suede. Its cost about $75 a yard last time I checked.

Yes it is. I just got pricing the other day. That suede has 1/8" foam on the back though so i don't know if i can use it for things like wrapping my gauge pillar and stuff.

@john is ultrasuede the closest match to alcantara? I can get ultrasuede for $61 a yard vs. Alcantera for $119 a yard.

Honestly Alcantera is its own type of suede. They have their own patented way of making it and it feels different than other suedes. The company doesnt even refer to their product as a type of suede. https://www.alcantara.com/en/materiale/5/index.do

I would say that Ultra suede is the closet in quality but you probably wont find anything with the same exact feel. I have also heard that Dinamica is really nice as well. I dont know if its sold in the US though...

@John so i went to the upholstery shop that did my interior previously and they used synergy II suede unbacked on my headliner. don't know which direction to go. not wanting to spend a fortune on suede since i'm learning.

@stealthmode93

Go buy from this seller. I already bought like 10 yards from them of this stuff (Ultrasuede Toray HP)
This is real stuff, don't care what people say

If they have color you need and size you need - you can't go wrong as far as "practice" material which is real. You can see it on my photos in this topic. I did order samples from various online stores and did compare them. It is what it says it is. It is hard to fake this stuff because if you fake it good enough it will cost as real deal..

https://www.ebay.com/itm/2680-Slate-Blu ... Sw42dZAhR2