You see the name Sunbrella® everywhere: on expensive lounge sets, on boat cushions, on parasols. And maybe on our outdoor cushions too. But what is Sunbrella, really? Why does a lounge set in this fabric easily cost thousands of euros, while a cushion from the budget store has faded after one summer? In this guide we explain it to you. No difficult words, just honest answers.
What is Sunbrella?
Sunbrella is a brand name for outdoor fabric from the American family business Glen Raven. The fabric has existed since 1961 and was developed as cloth for awnings: something that could hang in full sun for years without fading or tearing. For the European market, Sunbrella is made by Dickson Constant in France.
From awnings it quickly moved to water sports. Boat sails, bimini tops, boat cushions: on the water, the combination of sun, salt and moisture is merciless on fabric. Sunbrella held up. Then came the garden furniture makers. If you buy a premium lounge set today, there is a good chance you are sitting on Sunbrella.
The heart of the story: Sunbrella is solution-dyed acrylic. That sounds technical, but it is the whole secret. We explain it below.
Solution-dyed: the colour runs right through the fibre
With ordinary fabric, the fibre is made first and dyed afterwards. The colour then sits as a layer around the fibre. Sun, rain and washing slowly wear that layer away. That is why a cheap garden cushion looks dull and washed out after one season.
With solution-dyed acrylic it works differently. The colour pigment is added to the liquid acrylic before the fibre is spun. So the colour is not on the fibre, but all the way through it. Compare it to a carrot and a radish: a radish is only red on the outside, a carrot is orange right to the core. Sunbrella is the carrot.
Good to knowBecause the colour runs right through the fibre, it cannot come off. Not from the sun, not from scrubbing, not even from diluted bleach. That last one is unique — with almost any other fabric, bleach is the end of the story; with Sunbrella it is simply part of the official cleaning advice.
There is a second advantage to this way of colouring. Because every yarn already has its final colour before weaving, the weaver can play with colours: mixing shades, weaving textures, combining yarns. That is why Sunbrella does not feel like sailcloth, but like a real upholstery fabric — with depth in the colour instead of a printed pattern. Put a printed polyester cushion next to a woven Sunbrella cushion and you see the difference right away: with the print, the back is white; with Sunbrella, the fabric looks just as good on both sides.
Why it does not fade, go mouldy or soak through
Three properties make Sunbrella the outdoor fabric:
- Fade-proof. Because the pigment is in the fibre itself, the colour stays almost the same even after years of bright sun. A dark blue cushion stays dark blue.
- Water-repellent. The fabric has a finish that makes rain bead off instead of soaking in. Note: water-repellent is not the same as waterproof. In a heavy downpour that lasts a long time, moisture can eventually get through. The big difference from ordinary fabric: Sunbrella dries quickly afterwards and hardly absorbs any water itself. Read more in which cushions can stay outside.
- Mould-resistant. The acrylic fibre itself is no breeding ground for mould. Mould can only grow on dirt that sits on the fabric — pollen, leaf debris, bird droppings. Keep the cushion clean and mould simply has nothing to eat. And if it does go wrong once, you can get it out again: see our step-by-step plan against mould.
There is something practical too: the fabric does not feel like plastic. Sunbrella has the soft, woven look of an indoor fabric. That is why you see it more and more indoors as well, on sofas and chairs of families with children or pets.
Sunbrella in the Netherlands: where do you see it?
In the Netherlands you come across Sunbrella in three places:
- Premium garden furniture. Lounge sets from the better brands are upholstered in Sunbrella. You see that in the price: such sets easily cost several thousand euros.
- Water sports. Boat cushions, sprayhoods and boat covers. The fabric's marine past is not marketing here, but the reason skippers rely on it.
- Fabric by the metre and made to measure. A number of Dutch workshops sew made-to-measure cushions from Sunbrella, and you can buy the fabric by the metre — expect around € 40 to € 70 per metre.
What you did not see until recently: ready-made outdoor cushions in real Sunbrella for a normal price. That is the gap we fill. How that works, you can read further on.
Experiences and lifespan
Ask someone with a Sunbrella lounge set about their experience and you usually hear the same thing: "after five years it still looks good." That is also what you can expect from the fabric. Where a polyester garden cushion often stays nice for one to three seasons, solution-dyed acrylic lasts many years with normal use and a little care. We give a 5-year warranty on our cushions, but in practice the fabric is far from finished after that.
What ultimately determines the lifespan is not the sun — the fabric can handle that — but neglect: dirt left lying for months, or a cushion that goes into winter wet. With a few minutes of care per month you get the most out of the fabric. How Sunbrella compares to cheaper outdoor fabrics, we have set out in Sunbrella vs olefin vs polyester. In short: you pay more per cushion, but less per year that the cushion stays nice.
TipWant to be sure you are buying real Sunbrella? The fabric always has a collection and colour name you can look up — Natté Sooty, Heritage Rust, Zori Matcha. For every cushion we state exactly which Sunbrella collection the fabric comes from, with the original fabric number. "Acrylic look" or "Sunbrella-like" is not the real thing: the look can be copied, the properties cannot.
Our cushions: leftover fabric from the roll
Here is our story. Furniture makers and upholsterers who work with Sunbrella always have fabric left over at the end of a roll. Too little for a lounge set, too good for the skip. We buy up that leftover fabric and cut 45×45 cm outdoor cushions from it. Premium brand fabric, rescued from the scrap pile.
That is why a cushion in real Sunbrella starts at € 29,95 with us. The same fabric as on that lounge set costing thousands of euros, with a zip and washable cover, filled with firm hollow fibre, delivered from stock. The flip side: every leftover fabric is finite. When a colour is gone, it is gone.
Sunbrella outdoor cushion Natté White
The white classic from the Natté collection: woven texture, timeless on any lounge set — and thanks to the fabric, easy to keep white.
from € 30,45 — delivered from stock
Sunbrella outdoor cushion Solids Dark Smoke
Deep anthracite grey from the Solids line. It is with dark colours that you really see the difference: this one does not fade in the sun.
from € 29,95 — delivered from stock
Want to feel for yourself what solution-dyed means?
Browse the plain base colours in Sunbrella Solids or the woven textures in Sunbrella Natté — all cut from original leftover fabric, each colour while stocks last.
Not sure about something? Take a look at the frequently asked questions.
Frequently asked questions
Is Sunbrella waterproof?
No, Sunbrella is water-repellent, not waterproof. Rain beads off the fabric and the fabric itself hardly absorbs any moisture, so a cushion dries quickly. In prolonged rain, moisture can eventually reach the inner cushion — stand the cushion upright in the shade and it dries by itself.
How long does Sunbrella fabric last?
With normal outdoor use, the fabric lasts many years without visible fading — five to ten years is no exception. We give a 5-year warranty on our cushions. The lifespan mainly depends on care: storing it clean and dry over winter makes the difference.
How much does Sunbrella fabric cost?
By the metre you pay around € 40 to € 70 in the Netherlands, depending on the collection. A ready-made 45×45 cm outdoor cushion costs from € 29,95 with us — made possible because we cut from leftover fabric.
