The best fabrics to use for bed throws: bedroom throws and bedding options

Throws are one of the most important things to think about come the cold months. It's important to make your home including your bedroom warm and cosy. Sure, it’s great to be lazing by the fire in the living room after a hearty evening meal, but come bedtime, you want to cuddle up and be warm all night.  

This room is your retreat, and in winter it’s your haven of comfort and warmth. So make sure this room is as inviting and relaxing as possible. Use colour and texture for luxury throws and other decor furniture to make your personal space the warmest room in your house. All you have to do is add a gorgeous bedcover that’s beautiful and begs you to cuddle up in it. 

The secret to the perfect blankets is definitely in the fabric you choose. Let’s take a look at bedding. We give you all the information you need on how you can choose the right one to transform your room into a cosy retreat.

What are throws? 

Yes, they are another layer to keep us warm in bed when it’s cold outside. But what exactly are they? Where do they fit on the décor trail?

A throw is something you literally throw over you when you’re cold. You’ve got bedding – sheets over mattresses, followed by blankets and a duvet and you may also have a bedspread that doubles up as something on your bed to keep you warm. But if you feel an extra chill coming on, that’s when you toss over one of these handy decor accessories and let them come into their own.

Bed throws are:

• That extra layer on your bed when the temperature drops.
• Smaller than blankets and king size covers, but larger than you’d expect. It has to keep you warm, so it can’t be miniscule. Around 50x60 inches is a good estimate.
• A stylish addition to your room – so make sure you choose the right fabric, colour and pattern.
• A versatile option. Throw it over yourself while you’re reading on top of the bed, or leave it over the bed or your mattress for extra warmth on a cold winter night.

What's the difference?

• • Bedspreads are usually lightweight covers. We often talk about quilted bedspreads, as these are one of the most popular coverings that we use to decorate a room to sleep in. This particular covering has to be large enough to cover the entire bed, pillows included.  When you are ready for bed, you usually double bedspreads over at the foot of the bed before climbing in under the duvet. In summer you can use it instead of a duvet – people usually put it on their beds over a flat sheet.
  • A throw, whether you’re talking about one for the sofa or bedspreads, is another super decorative element for your home. In the case of throws, they also double up as a great source of extra warmth when you’re sitting on the sofa. This décor accessory is a smaller size than your other covers for beds or blankets, and it’s perfect to toss over the end of the bed as well as a sofa, too. If you prefer, you can drape it over a chair so that it’s easy to reach for and put over yourself if you wake up feeling cold during the night. 
  • Blankets, on the other hand, are warm, smaller decor pieces that are not used for decorative purposes.

New bedding trends

Covers are right on trend for winter right now and it’s easy to understand why. The focus for bedding is on combining comfort, warmth and style to create a really cosy sanctuary for girls and boys, men and women. And these gorgeous home décor pieces give some extra panache. Let’s face it. People love to keep their bedrooms warm and inviting, especially when it’s cold outside. 

Colours and textures for bedrooms are soft and nurturing. Bedding fabrics are luxurious and comfortable – faux fur covers and those items made from cosy fleece are very popular right now for the winter months. 

Hues reflect our individual personalities – so when you’re considering what to use to decorate your bedrooms, think about bedding in soft, soothing earthy tones and neutrals like white and grey. Greens are making a comeback in decor, in natural shades that are calming and remind us of being surrounded by nature. 

If you need some more advice on colour choices for bedding, read our informative blog on colour, fabrics and emotions.

Other shades that offer extra comfort to add include orange, caramel, burgundy and moss green.

Patterns on fabric are also big in interior décor currently, in a choice of subtle designs or experimental mixes of pattern on pattern. 

What to look for at John Lewis and other stores

• Make sure it’s easy to clean:  Select a new cover in a fabric that’s safe to machine wash and dries quickly. 
• Make it hypoallergenic: Even if you don’t have sensitive skin, hypoallergenic fabrics will also prevent dust mites and other irritations.
• Choose a fabric that is sustainable: We spend a lot of time sleeping, so we need to make sure our linen is made from eco-friendly materials. When you shop, go for organic,sustainable fibres or recycled fabrics. And make sure they are globally certified (view our blog on certified fabrics).

The best fabrics to choose

Cotton

Believe it or not, we sleep better with this type of fabric bed throw than any other kind. That's because this fabric is thermal; it's warm in winter and cool in summer. It's also 100% natural, sustainable, hypoallergenic, durable and biodegradable. Best of all, shades and designs print vibrantly on cotton. This is why we use cotton for every type of product, from dresses to linen and decor such as cushions.

As they're lightweight, these throws aren't considered heavy for interior décor use. They're not only light; they’re also breathable and don't shrink in the wash. Check out this sustainable, organic fabric (ie organic fabric) here.

maake’s cotton choices

• Calico Plain Cotton: Plain woven lightweight 100% natural fabric
• Organic Calico Natural: 100% GOTS fabric. The organic version of our Calico above.
• Satin: Smooth, luxurious 100% natural material with a matte finish. 
• Organic Satin: 100% GOTS – organic, smooth, luxurious fabric.

Polyester

This lightweight synthetic fabric keeps us warmest of all the decor and clothing fabrics that are available on the market. Polyester is comfortable and also breathable. As it’s 100% synthetic, it’s also completely cruelty-free. And it’s also hypoallergenic, smooth and doesn’t shrink after washing. Another plus: fabric shades print vividly on these fabrics.

maake’s polyester choices

• Dupioni FR: 100% polyester lightweight fabric certified to flame retardant (FR) standards.
• Heavy Satin: Flame retardant quality 100% polyester fabric.
• Velvet: 100% polyester fabric that is soft and matte.

Recycled polyester 

Recycled polyester (rPET) is the more sustainable choice when choosing polyester fabric, as it’s made from recycled plastic bottles. Like polyester, it’s extremely warm and comfortable. In fact, one of the decor fabrics we’ve chosen as ideal to make throws out of is also certified safe for children. Find out everything about recycled polyester right here.

maake’s recycled polyester choices

Eco Velvet: 100% rPET (recycled polyester) ultra soft matte fabric. 

Eco Fleece: 100% rPET (recycled polyester) fabric that is warm, comfortable and certified safe for kids.

Other fabrics to shop for 

The type of decor fabric you choose will affect the throw’s durability and longevity, so take that into account when you shop for and choose all your decor fabrics. If you’re looking to save time and money, choose fa ready-made quality throw from the stunning selection of beautiful throws/blankets options we offer on sale at maakeHome. They’re great for a baby or décor accessory, or as a gift for Christmas and other occasions. And if you prefer to design your own fabric for throws/blankets as a Christmas gift – no problem. You can create your own fabric for your bed throws right here.

maake’s fabric selection 

• • Wool: It is extremely warm. It’s also more heavyweight and 100% natural. It doesn’t crease or smell and is breathable, biodegradable and sustainable. This fabric can be scratchy, however. If you’re comparing woollen fabric to fleece for throws for your home or as gifts, remember: woollen fabric is warmer and more comfortable. 
  • Cashmere: Really warm but equally expensive, cashmere, made from goats’ hair, is luxurious and cosy. It’s softer, lighter and finer than woollen fabric.
  • Flannel: You can use different fabrics to make flannel, including woollen fibres, cotton and polyester. Woollen flannel is particularly warm and cosy, but not as common as polyester flannel fabric, which is less expensive and more hard wearing. It’s not very breathable, though, so it isn’t ideal for warm weather.

Love Avocados Blanket by Andrea Lauren

·       Down: Feathers from ducks and geese are warm and insulate us from the cold. But their production is not cruelty-free, which is why many people prefer not to use them. Goose down is the warmest and lightest fabric because of its excellent insulation properties.

·       Acrylic: This fabric is less expensive than others, but not as warm. It’s also easy to keep clean, hard wearing and hypoallergenic. 

A touch of inspiration

Once you’ve chosen your home decor fabric and have checked out everything we’ve had to say about the best textiles to use for décor and design, why not add some fromthe range of gorgeous designs we have to print on?

We have a treasure trove of well over 13,000 designs in our Design Library – or you can print your own. If you decide to choose one or more of the patterns in our extensive library for your order, remember: each of these creations was made by an independent artist, and when you choose one of them to print on your fabric, the artist gets paid. We hope that is incentive enough for you to take a look at the stunning selection of what’s on offer!

Upload Your Design

To give you an idea of what each fabric looks like when it’s printed on, order a sample book.

For an idea of all the colors you can use to print on fabric, make sure you get our Colour Atlas, which features an array of colors printed on 1m of fabric.