Linen Cushions: How To Incorporate This Versatile Texture Into Your Home

If you want to add a touch of elegant luxury to your home, then linen cushions are a fantastic option. They come in a wide variety of colours and patterns, from punchy green cushions to stunning floral cushions, so there’s something for everyone. 

What To Know About This Luxurious Textile

Linen is one of the oldest known fabrics - with first evidence of its use dating back 30,000 years ago! It has long been prized as a versatile and valuable textile due to its breathable, durable and absorbent properties.

As we’ve grown more aware of our impact on the world, we have realised the environmental impacts of textile waste and unsustainable materials. Linen is a natural fibre making it biodegradable material. That means that you can enjoy your lovely green linen cushions while knowing they are an eco-friendly choice.

Linen is made from a plant that is commonly known as flax. Although Kiwis should note that this is not the same plant that we call flax! Linum usitatissimum is the botanical name of the plant that is turned into linen. It’s a hardy perennial plant that has a short growing cycle of 100 days and requires significantly less water to grow and fewer pesticides than cotton, meaning it ticks a number of boxes as a sustainable choice.

Amazingly, the entire plant is harvested and used. Even the roots contain hardy fibres that are woven into linen yarn. 

The seeds, rich in oils, are processed to make linseed oil. Linseed oil is prized as a wonderful wood preservation treatment. They’re also turned into flaxseed oil; rich in Omega 3 and with many health benefits this is sold extensively in the natural health industry.

It’s truly amazing how much use we can get from this one plant. After thousands of years, linen remains a symbol of luxury to wear and use. Why not try sprucing up your home with some elegant linen cushions?

A Few Tips For Using Lavish Linen Cushions In Your Home

Linen fibres are very strong - in fact, they are up to three times stronger than cotton. This means that quality linen that is well-cared for can last for many decades.

Linen, with its distinctive texture adds a sense of casual luxury that’s perfect for any kind of New Zealand home. 

In fact, all international design houses recognise that linen remains a prized textile, and designs printed onto a linen base will always have a significantly higher price point than designs printed onto cotton or synthetic materials. The resulting product is inimitable and instantly recognisable to those in the know!

So how do you keep your new cushions beautiful? Regardless of whether you’ve chosen solid green cushions or complex patterned cushions, it’s important that you care for linen properly to ensure it stays lovely and durable. You should know to:

Follow Washing Instructions. Caring for linen takes some effort, as linen can easily shrink when washed. So it’s very important to always follow washing instructions when caring for any linen product. I would recommend always getting a professional to clean linen curtains, as they will almost certainly shrink when washed. But for the DIYers, here’s some tips.

Becky Lee linen cushions should only ever be dry cleaned on a gentle cycle, to ensure they stay looking beautiful for many years to come.

Limit Direct Sun Exposure. Being a natural fibre, linen is more likely to fade when exposed to direct sunlight. You’ll need to be very careful when putting linen into high-sun positions as the fabric may lose its colour much faster than a synthetic fabric would.

UV rays can also cause the linen fibres to become brittle over time, which could cause the fabric to tear or ‘perish’ more easily.

So protect your linen cushions from direct sunlight, to make sure they stay beautiful for years to come.

Protect Your Linen Drapes. If you’re using linen for drapes, you must use a high-quality lining to protect it from sunlight, especially here in NZ where our sun is so intense. The leading edge of the curtains (the piece that sits adjacent to the window or door frame when open) will be exposed to sunlight when the curtains are open and will certainly be the first place to fade. To help with this make sure you allow a generous amount of track to stack the curtains right back off the window if you have the space! And if the pattern allows, periodically swap the drapes over so the leading edge is changed.

Length of Linen Drapes.  Linen drapes are prone to what is known in the industry as ‘movement’. They absorb and release moisture from the air around them, which can cause their length to vary slightly. 

Because of this, it’s standard to ‘puddle’ linen drapes to avoid them suddenly looking too short. Puddling is where extra length is added to the drapes to allow them to pool on the floor. 

In my experience, most modern households don’t want puddling. So allowing an extra 10-20mm on your finished length, so the drapes just slightly rest on the floor, can counter the movement issue.

What To Consider When Choosing Your Linen Cushions

There are so many gorgeous linen cushions to choose from; how do you know what to pick? My personal favourite linen cushion designs are:

• Cleo Floral. This sophisticated cushion is decorated with beautiful brick red, powder blue and pink stylised floral patterns on a muted charcoal base. It’s a fantastic way to add a bit of nature-inspired extravagance to your home.

• Susie Q. This bright linen cushion uses plenty of punchy colours, with its pinks and reds standing out among the calming blues and greens of its patterning.

• Fairbanks. The Fairbanks cushions come in three distinct colours - an elegant purple and blue cushion, my favourite green linen design  and a sophisticated salmon cushion.

Cushions are a fantastic way to add pops of colour to your home. You can mix different colours or patterns to create a unique look. Check out our previous blog on pattern mixing!

Where Can You Find Gorgeous, Lavish Luxury Cushions In Aotearoa?

For some of the most beautiful linen cushions in New Zealand, visit my online store at Becky Lee. I have a stunning array of luxurious handmade cushions of all kinds.

Please don’t hesitate to call me on 021668740 if you’d like some assistance, or have any custom requests. 

Enjoy the timeless beauty of linen with Becky Lee.