---
title: "Wide Wale Corduroy Sofa: Is the Rib Coarse or Fine?"
url: "https://cushionguide.com/answers/corduroy-wale-width-sofa/"
section: "The Cutting Table"
author: "Élodie Marchand, The Colorist of New Orleans"
author_url: "https://cushionguide.com/masters/elodie/"
published: "2026-07-21"
updated: "2026-07-21"
keywords: "wide wale corduroy sofa, corduroy floor sofa, corduroy fabric sample, wide wale corduroy, teddy floor sofa fabric"
---

# Is the floor sofa corduroy fine or wide wale?

*A rib is a line of shadow. How far apart those lines sit changes how the whole sofa holds the light.*

Also asked as: Is the corduroy coarse or fine?; I prefer a coarse, wide corduroy

> **The quick answer:** The floor sofa corduroy is a coarse, wide-wale, high-quality corduroy, and fabric samples are cut from the same cloth used in production, so the swatch you hold is what the sofa gets. If it reads finer than in the photos and you want a bolder rib, there is a second corduroy with wider wales, and a sample of it can be sent too.

![Low view of a cream velvet floor sofa with dusty rose ends, knit throw and coffee mug on a layered jute rug in warm sun](https://cushionguide.com/media/modular-floor-sofas/rose-velvet-floor-sofa-low-angle-sunset-1600.webp "Shot from floor height, the rose-and-cream sofa shows its soft velvet sheen in low evening light.")

## Key facts

- The floor sofa corduroy is coarse and wide wale.
- Samples are cut from the same corduroy used in production.
- A second corduroy with wider wales is available, with its own sample.
- The teddy floor sofa corduroy comes in 9 colors.
- Black, maroon, fuchsia, lilac and lavender aren't made in corduroy; those shades come in velvet or soft fabric.
- Floor, corner and bay-window cushions can be made in the sofa corduroy at the same price.
- Fabric swatches are roughly palm-sized, about 4 x 4 to 6 x 6 in (10 x 10 to 15 x 15 cm), enough to count the wales.
- Each teddy floor sofa seat mattress is about 79 x 39 x 6.5 in (200 x 100 x 17 cm), so the rib runs across a large surface.

## What the wale does to a room

A [wale](https://cushionguide.com/glossary/#wale) is the raised rib of the cloth, and the valley beside it is where the shadow lives. Wide wales make deeper valleys, so the sofa reads as texture from across the room, not only up close.

The floor sofa's [corduroy](https://cushionguide.com/fabrics/corduroy/) is coarse and wide wale. The sample you order is cut from that same cloth, not a lookalike. One buyer held it and found it finer than the photos had suggested. Daylight never lies; your screen sometimes does. In hand, the standard wale can read closer to medium.

## Checking the rib before you order

- ✓ Order the corduroy sample; it is cut from the production cloth
- ✓ Look at it in daylight, near the window where the sofa will sit
- ✓ Hold it close, then step back across the room
- ✓ Compare it with a real customer photo, not only the listing shot
- ✓ If it reads too fine, ask for the wider-wale corduroy sample

## What the sofa corduroy is not

- ✗ Not velvet, though velvet is a separate option
- ✗ Not made in black, maroon, fuchsia, lilac or lavender
- ✗ Not meant to be dyed afterward
- ✗ Not a fine pinwale

## Should the corduroy rib whisper or speak?

Do you want the rib to whisper or to speak, my friends? If the standard sample whispers and you hoped it would speak, the wider-wale corduroy is the answer, and it is sampled the same way.

The [wale and nap Pattern](https://cushionguide.com/guides/corduroy-cushions-wale-nap-direction/) explains how the rib catches light across a [modular floor sofa](https://cushionguide.com/cushions/modular-floor-sofas/), seat and back alike.

> **Tailor's margin:** If the corduroy sample reads finer than the photos, ask for the second, wider-wale corduroy before ordering; the sofa gets exactly the sample's cloth.

> The floor sofa's corduroy sample is cut from the production cloth, so the wale width in your hand is the wale width on the sofa.
>
> — Élodie

## Buyer questions

**A common question:** Is the sample the exact corduroy used on the sofa? It looks finer than your photos.

**The workshop's answer:** Yes, the sample is the same corduroy used on the sofa. For a bolder look there is another corduroy with wider wales, and the shop can send that sample too.

**A common question:** Is the sofa corduroy a fine cord or a wide wale?

**The workshop's answer:** It is a coarse, wide-wale corduroy, which the shop describes as high quality.

**A common question:** Does the corduroy come in black, maroon or lilac?

**The workshop's answer:** No. Corduroy comes in a fixed palette, 9 colors on the teddy sofa, with no black, maroon, fuchsia, lilac or lavender. Those shades are available in velvet or soft fabric, and dyeing the corduroy isn't recommended.

## Questions buyers ask next

### Can I get cushions, not only a sofa, in the sofa corduroy?

Yes. Floor, corner and bay-window cushions can be made in the sofa corduroy at the same price, tufted or plain. A corduroy-like fabric is also offered in cream, navy, mustard and terracotta.

### Can I buy the corduroy by the yard to match?

Yes. Samples and cut lengths are sold through the fabric listing, and larger pieces through a custom order link. Send the fabric code and the length you need for a quote; the fabric can ship with your cushions.

### Are the pouf and ottoman in the same corduroy as the sofa?

Yes. The teddy floor sofa, pouf, ottoman and replacement covers all use the same ribbed corduroy in every color. Listings that once said velvet were corrected, and velvet is offered as a separate option.

## Related at the atelier

- [Is the floor sofa, and its covers, velvet or corduroy?](https://cushionguide.com/answers/floor-sofa-velvet-or-corduroy/): The floor sofa is corduroy: the teddy floor sofa, the pouf sofa, the ottoman and the replacement covers all use the same ribbed corduroy in every color, brick included, so the pieces match.
- [Does the corduroy floor sofa hold up to pets and washing?](https://cushionguide.com/answers/corduroy-floor-sofa-pets-scratch-washable/): Yes: the floor sofa's corduroy is a cotton-polyester blend the workshop describes as very durable and scratch-resistant, so pet claws don't catch on it easily.
- [Corduroy modular floor sofas and cushions: wale size, nap direction, why no piping](https://cushionguide.com/guides/corduroy-cushions-wale-nap-direction/): A corduroy cushion for a sofa or floor seat should be wide wale, roughly 3 to 8 ribs per inch, with every piece cut so the nap runs the same way.
- [Can I get the floor sofa in a fabric other than corduroy?](https://cushionguide.com/answers/floor-sofa-fabric-options-velvet-linen/): Yes: corduroy is only the standard, and the modular and teddy floor sofas, the pouf sofa and IKEA Hemnes daybed covers can all be made in velvet, smooth soft fabric, linen, canvas-weave linen or a…
- [Replacement covers for a floor sofa: fit, color change and single pieces](https://cushionguide.com/guides/floor-sofa-replacement-covers/): Floor sofa replacement covers are zippered covers sold without foam or metal bars: a standard set is two 78 x 39 x 6.5 in (200 x 100 x 17 cm) seat covers and two 39 x 39 x 15 in (100 x 100 x 39 cm)…
- [Modular Floor Sofa in Cream and Rose Velvet: How to Measure](https://cushionguide.com/readings/cream-dusty-rose-velvet-floor-sofa-sheer-curtain/): To measure a modular floor sofa, measure each piece rather than the wall: the base length and depth, each backrest's height and length, and the bolster against the base depth.

*With color and care — Élodie*

---

Written by Élodie Marchand (https://cushionguide.com/masters/elodie/) for CushionGuide (https://cushionguide.com/about/). The site explains made-to-measure cushions and the partner workshop makes them; measurements are in inches first. This Markdown mirrors the page at https://cushionguide.com/answers/corduroy-wale-width-sofa/