Vancouver

A gorgeous, fine wool sateen, Vancouver is made without any chemicals which can harm you or the ecosystem (it is Oeko-Tex 100 certified, after all). Although tested to be one of our highest rated upholstery fabrics at 40,000 Martindale¹, its lovely drape and luminosity also make it a superb choice for window treatments. 

Specifications

Certification
Oeko-Tex 100

Content
100% non-mulesed wool

Width
54" / 137 cm

Weight 
13.5 oz yd² / 383 gm m²

Durability
40,000 Martindale; suitable for heavy duty residential upholstery use¹

Care 
Vancouver can be washed but it will lose its lustrous sateen finish, becoming much more matte with a bit of a raised nap. If washed using cool temperatures, shrinkage is minimal at less than 2% in width and 3% in length.

The mill where this fabric was woven uses hydro and natural gas fuel power which has low emissions. The mill is an ISO 9001 certified facility.

This hard-working fabric can withstand the rigors of commercial applications while also providing the exceptional benefits of wool:

Wool improves air quality by absorbing and retaining VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds, chemicals you want to avoid) such as formaldehyde.

Wool breathes and helps regulate humidity.

At end of life, wool biodegrades, and none of the chemicals used in producing the fabric can hurt you or your ecosystem.

Good animal husbandry practices sequester carbon and help reduce the level of greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere while at the same time replenishing and renewing grassland soils.

What is non-mulesed wool?

One of the animal husbandry issues unique to sheep is the practice of mulesing.  Sheep which are raised in certain climates (as much of Australia) are susceptible to a condition called “fly-strike.” What is fly-strike?  A certain type of fly, called blow flies,  lay eggs on sheep’s back legs when the sheep are less than clean. When the flies hatch, these maggots burrow in any slightly raw or inflamed area and literally eat their victim alive.  To control this condition herders “mules” the sheep, which means cutting away large swaths of the skin on their hindquarters and back legs that is susceptible to the borrowing maggots. Mulesing is traditionally done without anesthetics, and is inhumane.  Our wool is from tiny ranchers in Uruguay, who have never needed to mules sheep as fly-strike is unknown in Central and South America.