Kravet Velvet vs. Kravet Performance Fabrics: What 5 Years of Ordering Taught Me

When I took over fabric purchasing for our interior design firm in 2020, I had a simple theory: expensive fabric means delicate fabric. It took exactly one expensive mistake to change that.

I'm the office administrator for a 32-person design studio. I manage all fabric ordering—roughly $180,000 annually across 12 vendors. Kravet is our go-to for upholstery fabrics, drapery hardware, and ready-made pillows. And the question I hear more than any other from our junior designers is: "Velvet or performance?"

So here's an honest, framework-based comparison of Kravet's velvet collection—including the viscose-blend velvets everyone loves but no one fully understands—versus the performance line (Crypton, Sunbrella, and similar). Three dimensions: care, appearance, and what they actually cost over time.

So What Are We Actually Comparing?

Kravet velvet is woven with a soft, piled surface that catches light and adds depth. Many of the most popular velvets in the collection are made with viscose fabric (粘胶纤维 in Chinese)—a semi-synthetic fiber derived from regenerated cellulose. Viscose gives velvet that silky drape and liquid sheen. It's gorgeous. It's also not forgiving.

Kravet performance fabric is engineered for real life. Crypton has a built-in moisture barrier. Sunbrella is solution-dyed acrylic—the color goes all the way through the fiber, not just the surface. These fabrics are designed to be wiped down, spot-cleaned, and generally treated as well as you'd treat a kitchen counter.

Two very different animals. Here's how they break down.

Alright, Can You Wash Upholstery Fabric? Let's Start There.

The most common search query that lands readers on our blog is "can i wash upholstery fabric?" The honest answer: it depends entirely on the fiber content.

Viscose velvet? No. Absolutely not. Viscose is a high-maintenance fiber. Water leaves permanent marks. Heat causes shrinkage. Some professional spot cleaners can even lighten the color. I learned this in 2021 when one of our installers sprayed a water-based stain remover on a viscose-blend velvet sofa. A $9,000 sofa, with a permanent pale patch the size of a dinner plate.

That mistake taught me something I now tell every client: if you're not prepared to hire a professional upholstery cleaner, you should not be buying velvet. End of story.

Performance fabric is the opposite. Crypton and Sunbrella are practically indestructible. We have a hospitality client whose lobby sofa—Kravet performance fabric—survived a red wine spill at a launch event. Staff wiped it off with a damp cloth. Not a trace. One of our residential clients has two kids and a golden retriever. That performance fabric sofa has survived juice, mud, and one memorable permanent marker incident.

Honestly, I still don't fully understand why some velvets handle moisture differently even within the same collection. My best guess is it comes down to the exact blend ratio and finishing process. We just test everything on a swatch first now.

So can you wash upholstery fabric? The practical breakdown:

Performance fabric: yes—spot-clean with mild soap, wipe, even machine-wash some styles. Velvet and viscose blends: professional cleaning only. If you can't commit to that, you can't afford the velvet.

Conclusion: Performance wins on care. Not even close.

Does Performance Fabric Look as Good as Velvet?

No. I get asked this a lot, and I'll give you the same answer I give our clients: anyone who tells you performance fabric looks the same as velvet is selling you something.

Velvet does something to light that flat weaves can't replicate. A Kravet velvet pillow in deep sapphire blue shifts and shimmers through the day. The viscose-blend velvets have that liquid, almost glossy sheen that photographs beautifully and feels even better. Clients touch velvet and react physically. I've seen it a hundred times.

Performance fabric has come a long way. The newer Crypton styles Kravet carries have a pretty soft hand—no more plasticky crinkle like what was available even five years ago. But "improved" is not "comparable." Put a velvet pillow next to a performance pillow, close your eyes, and you'll pick the velvet every time.

But here's the nuance: the right question isn't "which is prettier?" It's "where does prettiness matter most?"

Conclusion: Velvet wins on appearance. This should surprise nobody.

The Cost Question Nobody Talks About

This is the dimension that changed my opinion. I track cost per year of service for every major fabric order we place. It's not formal accounting—more of a mental spreadsheet—but the pattern is consistent.

Based on our last 30 projects (pricing last verified in early January 2025):

• Kravet velvet: roughly $92–$148 per yard, depending on collection. Professional cleaning adds $400–$700 per sofa, every 12–18 months.
• Kravet performance fabric: roughly $105–$175 per yard. Maintenance cost is close to zero.

Over a five-year window, velvet ends up costing 25–35% more than its sticker price in maintenance alone. That's the conventional wisdom—performance fabric is the financially responsible choice for anything meant to last. And for permanent installations, it's correct.

But here's the counter-intuitive part: for rented or temporary spaces, velvet is actually the smarter buy.

We furnish a lot of short-term corporate environments—pop-up showrooms, startup offices on 12-month leases, exhibition lounges. For those, performance fabric is basically over-engineering. Velvet will look stunning for the entire lifespan of the space. You'll never be around long enough to face the maintenance bill. And the lower upfront cost means you're not paying a premium for durability you'll never use.

Everything I'd read said performance fabric is always the responsible choice. My experience with 200+ orders suggests otherwise. The expected lifespan of the space should drive the decision—not just the traffic it'll see.

Conclusion: For permanent installations, performance wins. For short-term spaces, velvet is the smarter call.

So: Velvet or Performance? Here's My Decision Framework

I use this framework every single week. Steal it.

Choose Kravet velvet when:

• The space is low-traffic: private offices, conference rooms, residential-style lounges
• The client's priority is visual impact—especially for pillows and feature chairs
• The space will be redesigned within 3 years
• You can set clear expectations about professional cleaning

Choose Kravet performance fabric when:

• The furniture is used daily: reception seating, open workstations, waiting areas
• Clients have kids, pets, or a work culture of "lunch at the desk"
• The installation is expected to last 5+ years
• Your maintenance team wants zero-friction cleaning

A Quick Fabric Drapery Reference

If you're looking for a fabric drapery reference, here's the short version: drapery is a different animal. Performance fabric is usually overkill for drapery unless you have serious sun exposure. Velvet drapes beautifully, blocks light, and adds thermal insulation. For most drapery in office and hospitality settings, velvet or a viscose blend is my default. The exception: west-facing windows with brutal afternoon sun. In that case, spec a fabric with UV resistance or line the drapery properly. Don't learn that one the hard way.

About Those Kravet Pillows

Kravet pillow questions always come up. Ready-made Kravet pillows in performance fabric are great for high-traffic waiting areas. But a pillow is a low-risk item—it's not a $9,000 sofa. When it wears out, replacing it is a rounding error. So for pillows, I almost always say: go velvet. It's the cheapest way to get that Kravet luxury impact in a room, and you can swap it out in two years without regret.

The honest bottom line: Velvet and performance fabric aren't competitors. They're tools for different jobs. The mistake—and I made it—is treating them as interchangeable.

If I could redo my first year, I'd ask three questions before every order: How long will this space exist? How much abuse will it take? Who's going to clean it? That last question is the one most people forget. And it's the one that determines whether "can i wash upholstery fabric" ends in confidence—or in a very expensive regret.