Distressed Velour Texture | Next

Distressed Velour – French Grey

Fabric Material | Maya / Arnold | Custom Shader

Distressed Velour – French Grey is a digitally recreated upholstery fabric developed for Next, based on physical fabric data captured using the XTex scanning system. The material was built entirely in Arnold, with a strong focus on reproducing the irregular, worn character and soft tactile quality of distressed velour while remaining suitable for large-scale furniture production.

A key challenge with this fabric was achieving the subtle, uneven sheen characteristic of distressed velour. Unlike uniform velvet or flat woven materials, this fabric exhibits randomised highlight breakup where fibres catch light inconsistently depending on direction and compression. To replicate this behaviour, a custom shading network was developed that introduces controlled, non-uniform sheen variation across the surface without relying on geometry or grooming.

The shader combines layered roughness variation, directional breakup, and soft fibre response to create the illusion of worn pile and compressed areas. This allows the material to react dynamically to lighting, producing natural shifts in tone and reflectivity that mirror the behaviour of the real fabric when viewed from different angles.

The final result is a production-ready material that balances realism with performance, ensuring consistent appearance across all sofa models while preserving the distinctive, lived-in character of distressed velour.

Key Focus:
-XTex-scanned fabric recreation
-Custom Arnold shader development
-Simulated distressed pile and uneven sheen
-Randomised highlight breakup without geometry
-Scalable, production-ready upholstery material
-Realistic light interaction across large furniture assets