… and then some!

by Kian Amirkhizi & Doug Snow

It’s Saturday morning and you are riding along in the car with your wife. Roaming the neighborhood streets looking at garage sales only after your spouse “suggested” you spend some face time together with this “incredibly stimulating” activity. Now on your third stop, you pause as your eyes pour over the kingdom of refuge perfectly arranged on tables and cardboard boxes. It is begging you to purchase it as it seemingly knows its fate is sealed; whatever is not sold today ends up in the trash or as a humanitarian “donation” to Goodwill. Just as you are about to fake a gallstone attack, you see something behind a stack of “I’m with Stupid” t-shirts; can it be? Yes, it is, a plume of angelic light shimmers off the object in the distance as you race to it fearing that another captive male spouse may get to it first. You glide your hands over it, barely able to contain yourself; it feels so soft, the colors so vibrant.

Your wife screams “What, what?” You carefully grab the painting and present it to her. “No way! I’m not having a stupid picture of dogs playing poker in my house and what is that on, velour?”

“No, it’s not velour,” dejected, you set the frame down. “Its velvet, velour is French for velvet though, just so ya’ know.”

“Whatever!” she spits back.

This encounter with the soft plushy material gets you to think about velour and its roll in the automotive industry. Velour fits the bills nicely in a variety of applications when you need a stretchy durable knit material. Velour is very popular in the clothing industry as well; perhaps you recall the ever-so-desirable velour jogging suits that were worn by the decidedly in-active sports enthusiasts. How about dance outfits and theatrical uses? It’s even rumored that the material used for the original Star Trek outfits were, yes, velour. The velour fabrics utilized in the clothing industry are generally made from cotton, which makes it plushy, easy to care for, and affordable. Sometimes, velour is also made from artificial materials, such as polyester, depending on the manufacturer and the intended purpose such as automobile or marine use. The velour types used in the automotive industry are predominately synthetic in nature.

Did You Know …      

Velour is made from colored yarns that are woven together. One set of the yarns, running lengthwise, is called the “warp,” while the other set, running crosswise (at right angles to the warp), is called the “weft.” During the weaving procedure, the warp yarns are lifted (which is called “shedding”), and then the weft yarn is put in (or “picked”).

Interestingly, the nap of velour is attained through “pile weaving.” This is a process that takes the warp ends and loops them over metal rods or even wires. If you were to pull the rods out you would have something that looked similar to Berber carpet, a bunch of little loops. If you cut the loops, then the final fabric has the appearance of a plush carpet, which essentially creates the “nap” in velour.

Because of its attractive appearance and versatility, there are so many applications of velour from couches, draperies, and of course car upholstery. You may wonder, “why not choose velvet?” Velour is often advantageous over velvet because it has more “give” and stretch, and does not become damaged as easily through hard wear. Treatment with flame-retardants or manufacturing with flame-resistant thread can be utilized to increase safety.

Care of Velour

For our industry, specifically the use of this material in automobile upholstery, the care of velour is simple, no secret formulas or instructions. You can maintain the integrity of the material by regular vacuum treatments and keeping it free from the damaging rays of the sun. If parking inside a covered area is not an option, then the regular use of a foil shield-type sun reflector placed strategically in your windows will prevent the sun from destroying your interior and is highly advisable.

Stain Removal

The majority of material that you will encounter in our industry will be of the synthetic variety, namely polyester. This is hardy material and can be cleaned quite vigorously. For common cleaning, we recommend general purpose upholstery cleaner with a moderately high pH (self-neutralizing though). Use of a hot water extractor is a real plus when cleaning. Oxidizers and reducers are generally okay when facilitating the removal of stubborn food-based stains or synthetic dye stains from drinks and foods.

The Repair of Velour

Creating attractive and durable fabric repairs are a serious challenge for the interior repair technician. Many have often reflected that fabric repairs are only holding on with a drop of glue and a prayer. Recreating the unique texture of the material is difficult to simulate without the use of an EVA (Electrostatic Velour Applicator). With proper training, however, a velour repair can be durable and attractive, fading into near invisibility with proper concealment techniques.

Velour Flocking Fibers

Flocking is a process when electrostatically charged nylon particles are embedded into glue on a particular substrate. Flocking is quite common in the automobile industry as there is a wide range of uses for this type of application. For an example, most are familiar with the “velvet” glove box liners. This is a good example of the commercial use of flocking. Other uses in the automotive industry might be on the interior seam overlapping plastic panels to prevent noise from chatter. Also, on the back of plastic panels for sound deadening, and even window trim may have some flocking. Outside the car industry, flocking is widely used in the art industry as well as model building to taxidermy. There are a myriad of colors available, which compliment the repair process nicely, given the amount of color variation common with modern fabric selections. Mixing velour fiber colors is similar to ordinary pigments to achieve the correct color match.

The secondary use of these nylon fibers have become commonplace in the interior restoration industry. In fact, whole franchise operations were bore solely for the purposes of repairing velour once the fabric repair process was discovered using the fibers.

Velour Repair Glues

When choosing glue, a technician must reflect on the type of repair they will pursue. Water-based glues tend to dry slower giving the technician more working time. Solvent-based glues would have the opposite characteristic, drying much faster giving you shorter working time. However, solvent-based glues reach maximum strength much faster, being the ideal choice when functional use of the seat is a priority. Different manufacturers have varying degrees of results; experimentation and experience will guide through the process of selecting the correct glue.

From my own perspective, I prefer water-based adhesives in the majority of cases. I welcome that water-based adhesive takes longer to dry so that it gives me more time to work with the repair. Most velour repairs that I complete in the field are usually small cigarette burns that are just barely through the fabric. Many times, you will find them in the headliner or on an “A-pillar” or door panel. These are “non-wear” areas; places where people do not sit or your arms are not rubbing or touching the spot. Water-based glues, once dried, are softer to the touch creating a nicer feel to the repair. A serious issue with water-based adhesives, however, is they can shrink significantly once dried. Filling a large hole and packing it with fibers is ineffective repair technology. Go back the next day and look at your repair, you will find a giant crater!

Solvent-based adhesives are more durable, can be cured in a shorter time span, plus they can be made “flatter” than water-based adhesives. High-wear areas are places I use solvent-base. Especially when time is an issue, I can cure the glue instantly with a hot iron process. This process works great on headliners too, where you have a flat surface. You can use the solvent adhesive with an iron to make the repair perfectly flat. However, with water-based adhesives this is nearly impossible.

Multi-colored Velours

With so many different color variations, technicians once flummoxed by the multi-colored variety of velour have overcome the issue with the use of colored pencils in the repair process. The tips of the pencils are dipped into water to activate the pencil. Then, the pencil tip is pressed lightly into the finished repair, mirroring the adjacent area next to repair to conceal it. When drawing patterns with colored pencils, I use an ordinary cap off a bottle, put some tissue on the bottom of the cap, and then add a little water. I take a pencil and roll the tip on the wet tissue. This softens the tip of the pencil allowing a heavier coat of color to be applied.

You need to be artistic when recreating a pattern. Sometimes it is easier to do a little of the pattern then walk away. Come back, reanalyze the pattern and then continue the process. The more experience you have, the faster you will be at it.

Using an Electrostatic Velour Applicator

The electrostatic gun is a must-have if you plan to offer fabric repairs. It is essential for hiding repairs in the final stages of the repair process. Keep in mind, you must make the repair perfectly flat and it must be structurally sound with good color before flocking. A light flock over the repair area does wonders in concealing the damage. Also, when trying to match the color, you can check your match before using glue. Just spray a little water on the area, the apply flock with applicator. Check color match then brush off the flock.

The MATRI-X Method

In the field of interior restoration, the phrase “you are only as good as your last repair” rings resoundingly true. Unfortunately, technicians are judged on the repairs he completes today, rather than being able to rest on the successes of yesterday. Proper training is essential when such a large component of a technician’s consummate skills require proficiency in fabric repairs. The lesson: seek great training!

I was astonished to learn that velvet painting was not a recent phenomenon from the1950s in Tijuana, Mexico. It may be as old as the 14th century when Marco Polo wrote that he saw painting on velvet in Kashmir during his travels. We cannot be sure if he saw the “Dogs Playing Poker” one, however. But do you think his wife would have let him hang it in their house? Probably not!

Kian Amirkhizi and Doug Snow are the founders, primary instructors and owners of MATRI-X, a company that provides professional training and supply for the repair and restoration of leather, vinyl, plastic and velour. Both Amirkhizi and Snow are nationally recognized experts in these disciplines, and have won several national awards. Both continue to operate their own successful restoration/repair businesses in the Los Angeles area. Your feedback is welcomed, so please do not hesitate to contact them with comments regarding this article at MATRI-X at 888.207.6007. For more information on product suggestions, please contact them online at www.reconsupplies.com.