For most professionals who have been in the fabric and upholstery business for a number of years, the terms ‘railroaded’ and ‘repeat’ are as common as a materials’ ‘look’ and ‘feel’. But for the novice, these words can have us frantically searching our fabric dictionaries and web resources looking for a quick description that could save our pockets from unnecessary spending and the purchase of excess yardage.
The term ‘railroaded’ is in reference to the layout of a fabric on a piece of furniture in relation to the way it is woven at the fabric mill. It also refers to the direction of the pattern or the nap of the fabric. All fabric is either railroaded or not railroaded if it has a nap or pattern. Normally the pattern or nap on the fabric goes from side to side of the roll rather than up it. This allows you to upholster a sofa or piece of furniture in one piece instead of risking the prospect of creating a seam along the span. Sometimes it is more efficient to cut fabric that is railroaded even if you don’t have a large span because the pattern may be difficult to match. Design and repeat will have to be considered as well.
With most solids and velors you don’t have to worry about whether or not it is railroaded because they don’t have a pattern or print. With geometrics and retro’s you can have it situated regular or railroaded. With stripes, if you want to create consistency and balance, special attention needs to be paid to the direction they are going in. When stripes have different widths, they are considered to be either balanced or unbalanced. A balanced stripe is a stripe with the same type of stripe on each side. If you cut the fabric across the stripe, it would line up with the other end. An unbalanced stripe is a stripe that does not have the same stripe on each side. When cutting across this kind of stripe, the only way it will line up is if it is put back at the point at which it was cut. When working with chenille’s and velvets, you will find that a lot of them already come railroaded, making it easier for upholstery projects.
Another very important term to learn and understand is the ‘repeat’ of a fabric. The fabric repeat refers to the distance between one image or pattern and its repeated image or pattern. Most prints carry a vertical and horizontal repeat, but it is the vertical repeat that is most consistent across the length of the fabric. For this reason, it is the most important measurement when planning an upholstery, window treatment, or garment project. Repeats usually come in increments of 3” (3”, 6”, 9”, 12” etc). For smaller projects like ties and children’s clothing, a smaller repeat is recommended so that the images can be seen in full. Larger repeats are best suited for larger upholstery and bedding projects.
Having a basic understanding of these two common fabrication terms will save you a lot of time, money and aggravation on your next shopping trip. And in case this article was a little too long winded for you, here are two easy tips that will help you remember each one.
RAILROADED= print stands UPRIGHT across LENGTH of fabric like on SOFAS
NON-RAILROADED= print stands UPRIGHT across WIDTH of fabric like on DRAPES
VERTICAL repeat = runs LENGTH of fabric
HORIZONTAL repeat = runs from SALVAGE to SALVAGE
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