Why the fabric decides the fate of the cushion

An outdoor cushion consists of two parts: filling and cover. The filling determines the comfort – but whether the cushion sees a second season is almost always decided by the fabric. We see it in the workshop every week: customers who come to us after their third hardware-store cushion has gone musty, faded or stained. Not because the filling failed – but because the cover held onto water, fed mould, or lost its colour.

That's why we reverse the usual buying order: fabric first, then colour and shape. And for the fabric, there are five criteria.

The 5 criteria for fabrics that can stay outdoors

1. Water-repellent – from the fibre, not from a bottle

Rain, morning dew, a spilled iced tea: an outdoor seat cushion is going to get wet, the only question is what happens next. If the fibre absorbs the water, the cushion takes days to dry and grows mould from the inside out. Many fabrics achieve their bead-off effect through a sprayed-on impregnation – which washes out after one or two seasons. Better are fibres that physically can barely absorb water at all: polypropylene (olefin) leads all common textile fibres with under 0.1 percent moisture absorption.

2. Colourfast under UV light

A cushion sits in the sun – and the sun bleaches out any colour that only sits on the surface of the fibre. The solution is called solution dyeing: the pigment is mixed into the molten fibre before the thread is even formed, so the colour lives inside the material rather than on top of it. Our UV guide explains why that makes the difference in detail – the short version: surface-dyed hardware-store cushions often fade after just one or two summers.

3. Mould-resistant

Mould needs moisture in the fibre. A fabric that doesn't absorb water simply gives it no breeding ground – criterion 3 is the direct consequence of criterion 1. Natural fibres like cotton stand no chance here: they soak right through and hold the moisture exactly where damp stains form.

4. A textile feel, not a tarpaulin feel

Being weatherproof is no great feat – being weatherproof and pleasant against bare skin is. Coated "waterproof" fabrics feel like truck tarpaulin and crackle in the way with every movement. Modern olefin fabric, by contrast, has a textile, slightly grippy character, closer to sturdy cotton canvas than to plastic. Feel is subjective, though – which is exactly what the self-test further down is for.

5. Removable and washable

Sunscreen, bird droppings, red wine: on a cushion that's actually lived on, a stain is never a question of if. An outdoor cushion fabric therefore needs to do two things: let dirt sit on the fibre instead of soaking it in – and, as a cover, be removable via zip and machine-washable. The full stain routine is in our guide Caring for outdoor cushions the right way.

Fabrics for outdoor seat cushions at a glance

Here's how the four most common candidates fare against the five criteria – kept deliberately concise; the full fibre comparison with every strength and weakness is in our guide Olefin, acrylic or polyester?:

One caveat, in the interest of honesty: olefin is heat-sensitive (polypropylene melts at around 160 degrees) – irons, tumble dryers and barbecue coals near the cushion are off limits. In outdoor use this practically never matters, because the fabric dries faster in the open air than a dryer would take anyway. Every other material question, from manufacturing to safety, is answered in our Q&A guide What is olefin?.

Which fabric for which cushion?

Loose decorative and accent cushions: they sit in the most exposed spots – on the lounge, on the bench, quite happily on the grass too. Full weatherproofing is what counts here; our Cairo outdoor cushions are therefore sewn entirely from olefin, with a removable cover.

Seat cushions and bench cushions: for cushions with a foam core, the fabric additionally needs to be sewn shape-stable and mustn't shift on the core when you sit down – on the Nizza seat cushion a layer of fleece between the foam and the cover takes care of that. The fabric stays the same as for the decorative cushions: the same olefin, the same washability.

Back and lounge cushions: for the complete set of seat, back and cushions – including special shapes and fastening – we have a dedicated guide: Custom Lounge Cushions.

We offer the fabric in three qualities – Standard for covered areas, Premium for the open garden, and Premium ZigZag with a design pattern as an accent. Every colour and quality is shown on the fabric overview; an overview of every type of custom cushion is in our comprehensive guide Custom Outdoor Cushions.

Order free fabric samples: the self-test on your own patio

No product page in the world replaces actually touching the fabric. That's why we send out free fabric samples – and we recommend not just looking at them, but actually testing them properly. Here's how to run your own five-minute lab test:

Test 1 – water droplet: put a tablespoon of water on the sample. Does it bead off or soak in? A fabric that soaks it in here will turn into a sponge on your patio.

Test 2 – feel against skin: hold the sample against the inside of your forearm – the most honest spot for this. Does it crackle? Does it scratch? That's exactly how a summer evening in shorts is going to feel later.

Test 3 – colour in daylight: put the sample where the cushions will actually sit – next to the furniture frame, the patio floor, the awning. Screens lie about colour; midday sun doesn't.

A practical tip from the workshop, too: light tones heat up noticeably less in the midday sun than dark ones – if you want to use your cushion straight away even in high summer, test at least one light sample as well.

Frequently asked questions about fabrics for outdoor cushions