Velvet in all of its iterations — including crushed, flocked, devoré and brocade — is luxurious and supremely swaddle-worthy, always beckoning us to just reach out and touch its fuzzy nap. It’s true — vintage velvet sofas and couches, loveseats, bedroom furniture and other velvet pieces have always been in style.
First appearing in China during the Qin dynasty (around 221 BC), velvet was subsequently produced in Iraq and Egypt. The tactile textile reached large-scale distribution in Italy from the 12th through the 18th centuries, and the European Renaissance catapulted velvet into fancy manses and boudoirs. Finally, from the 1920s through the 1990s, the material became absorbed into mainstream culture.
As far as the resurgence of velvet goes, was the fashion industry the first to revive the fabric’s popularity? Or had interior designers been championing the resplendent fabric all along? Velvet definitely made a strong return to the spotlight as the fabric du jour back in the fall of 2016 on coveted catwalks, like those of Vetements, Stella McCartney and Saint Laurent.
One could argue that once velvet hit those runways, the interior-design world took notice. But lest we trick ourselves into thinking velvet will soon be “so over,” this plushest of fabrics is a true classic in every sense. And there doesn’t seem to be an end in sight for its popularity. (Even Gucci recently unveiled a Surrealist line of home decor heavily featuring, of all things, embroidered velvet cat cushions.)
Luminous. Resilient. Luxurious. Velvet’s richness elevates even the most ordinary objects, making it the perfect fabric to pair with furniture, decorative objects and, of course, ready-to-wear clothing. Find a collection of antique, new and vintage velvet furniture on 1stDibs.
