Ripstop ‘Ration Book’

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Woven in Scotland, our Ripstop is a canvas type fabric, easily distinguishable by its crosshatch weave pattern. A medium weight cloth, and extremely strong, it is a practical and interesting choice for covering upholstered furniture, or making heavy drapes.

100% nylon ripstop fabric was first developed in World War II for parachute cloth, as an economical and stronger alternative to silk parachutes. Our version is heavy and cotton rich, with the criss-cross of polyester reinforcement yarns woven in at regular intervals, greatly increasing the resistance of the fabric to ripping or tearing while also providing a handsome subtle texture.

Our concept was to create a practical and utilitarian style fabric with a slightly faded and dry look, that would only look better and better the more it was used and worn, like an old heavy cotton tent or truck tarp. To achieve this we have used unbleached and uncombed cotton yarns to provide a vairying texture, and also dyed the cloth on a special jig in Yorkshire that allows the fabric to crease and gather while being submerged in the dye bath. This gives a subtle ombre to the colour, with a gentle strié sometimes visible, which when made up into large pieces of upholstery or curtains gives a beautiful hand dyed effect.

We encourage ‘living tough’ with this fabric, using it for loose covers that you will want to wash over and over again, as it will get even more interesting when a patina of old marks has built up, like a vintage tarp or sail cloth. With very heavy wear expect the fabric to age like denim, loosing intensity of colour on the worn areas and in exceptional cases reverting back to the natural ecru-coloured cotton yarn colour, like the knees on worn denim jeans. Ripstop works extremely well on fixed upholstery; as-well as very heavy drapes, blinds, loose cushions and tote bags.

Cleaning advice

Our Ripstop washes well on a cool setting. It is pre-shrunk, but please expect further minimal shrinkage if you later wash it again, as all fabric shrinks a little when freshly washed.

Details

  • Name: Ripstop
  • Colour: Ration Book
  • Composition: 50% cotton, 50% polyester
  • Total fabric width: 139cm
  • Useable fabric width: 139cm
  • Repeat size: n/a
  • Rub count face side: 40,000
  • Fire retardency: Complies with Cigarette Test (BS 5852, Part 1:1979, Source 0) and Match Test (BS 5852, Part 1: 1979, Source 1)
  • Minimum order: 1 metre for retail customers, 2 metres for trade customers
  • Available in increments of: 10cm
  • Price: £120 per metre, including UK VAT

To request a sample or place an order get in touch with us by phone or email

We’re happy to ship anywhere in the world! Customs duties and taxes may apply if purchasing from outside the UK and we cannot predict these charges. Please account for these and be prepared to pay them upon delivery.