What does “slub” or “slubbiness” mean for fabrics or textiles?

If you’ve ever shopped for furnishing fabric or even professionally in the contract textiles industry, you may have come across the term “slub”. Today we look at what this term means and how slubbed fabrics can affect the overall look and feel of an interior styling.

We also share some key examples of slubby fabrics from across FibreGuard fabric ranges: there’s such a variety of tactile texture and visual appearance that you’ll see how versatile slubbed fabrics truly are.

First thing’s first though: what is slub?

What is the meaning of 'slub fabric'?

Slub is a type of yarn that’s thickened in random areas of a finished fabric. Some yarns can be spun at increasing and decreasing levels of tension, and would be described as ‘slubby’.

Slubby fabrics are intentionally created with yarns that have varying thicknesses, giving them a beautifully irregular, textured, and often natural, rustic look. They have a soft and natural feel, perfect for a relaxed, textured interior style.

They used to be seen as mistakes though! This is because they can be created accidentally by either uneven spinning (like we mentioned above) or through using low-quality, bumpy or short-staple fibre.

Related read: Answering your questions on flat weave vs textured décor fabrics >

Key benefits of 'perfectly imperfect' slubbed fabrics

Slubbed fabrics offer a distinctive blend of style and practicality, which makes them a popular choice in home furniture.

Here are the key benefits of choosing slubbed fabrics:

Creates a Unique, Organic Look:

• The deliberately varying thread thickness (the "slubs") creates a beautifully uneven texture and a natural, hand-spun aesthetic.
• This look is often described as perfectly imperfect, rustic, or artisanal, adding character and visual depth to a space.

Adds Warmth and Comfort:

• The irregular slubby texture gives the fabric a soft, tactile feel that is welcoming and cosy.
• It brings a sense of warmth and liveliness to interiors, making it ideal for blankets, cushions, or relaxed upholstery.

Enhanced Visual Interest and Dimension:

• The varying thickness of slubbed fabric fibres plays beautifully with light, adding dimension to the fabric without the need for complex patterns.
• This texture can look sophisticated and elevated, aligning with modern trends that favour textured simplicity.

Related read: Style spotlight on bouclé yarn and FibreGuard fabrics >

Peek at textiles history: slubbed fabrics in fashion and furnishing

Slubbed fabric can be found throughout the world of textiles, from upholstery and other soft furnishing fabric to fashion. In fashion fabrics, linen and tweeds, for example, are often slubbed.

Donegal tweed is a lovely example from the world of fashion. It’s a coarse wool fabric traditionally handwoven in Co Donegal, in Ireland, and is usually found in a plain weave but sometimes also twill.

The most common colours are black and white woven to make a heathered earth tone, flecked here and there with little pops of colourful slubs.

The worlds of fashion and décor collided historically in fabrics like bourette and eri silk

Both bourette and eri silk have been used for clothes as well as furnishing textiles.

Bourette is a slubby fabric containing ‘bourette’ yarns made from silk waste, combined with other yarns.

It has the distinctively rough, ‘slubby’ surface combining multi-coloured threads and knots of spun silk.

Eri silk is made from the cocoons of the domesticated silkworm samia ricini, without harming the silkworm itself. Once the larvae have developed as moths and leave their cocoons, the cocoons themselves are spun into a woolly or even cottony kind of yarn to make silk. Eri silk itself has a coarse, fine texture, and is very dense, making it naturally strong and durable.

Some collections of FibreGuard’s furnishing fabrics are slubby too

Slubbed fabrics, with their characteristic uneven texture and natural appeal, feature prominently across the FibreGuard ranges. Our stain resistant slubbed fabrics have a gorgeous construction with a natural, beautiful look.

Related read on furnishing fabrics: Multipurpose fabrics: upholstery, drapery and beyond >

Interested in keeping the thread going on FibreGuard's unique properties? Head over to our page on stain-resistant fabrics and get an even bigger picture.

Slub fabrics have a rich history and an exciting future in the furniture industry

It's clear that fabric slubbing is an important part of the history of textiles, and we can see how this has led textile designers to where we are today.

We've come a long way since ancient times when people first started making their own textiles. FibreGuard fabrics are more functional than ever before, and the best part is that they are still just as fun for our in-house textile designers to create!

Our furnishing fabrics are stain-resistant to ensure your peace of mind. It’s normal to be a little afraid of any accidental stains that might occur, but don’t worry.