Some ideas to try.
My suggestions: 1. Good, old-fashioned cotton or canvas duck. 2. Denim (any colour or print). 3. Straightforward cotton upholstery material, anything good enough for your sofa or drapery. Get any of it done with Scotch-Gard. Not far from here we have the Schumacher factory outlet in Newark, DE, which carries the Waverly brands and others. It is a sheer joy just to browse through there and imagine all the possibilities. I would not shy away from patterns, even some busy-looking ones, provided the overall theme is in good taste (not too 'nautical') and not overbearing (anything too cluttered will be conducive to seasickness). The one thing I would NOT advise you to do is enquire after 'boat' or 'RV' upholstery. That is a sure recipe for getting ripped off. Stretch your legs and go visit a few upholstery or fabrics places. Anything good enough for a rec room sofa ought to hold up very well in a boat (as I have found through experience in both areas). BTW-- for sheets and whatnot, try this: take two regular flat bedsheets, preferably all-cotton (not Martha Stewart's which are blends!) and sew them together at one end which will be the foot. Make it a double-sewn hem. Then tuck it in together all round the bunk as normal. This will be confortable over any respectable upholstery and solve the problem of the foot of your sheets pulling out from underneath an irregularly-shaped berth. This arrangement can be easily rolled up and tucked out of the way when the berth has to become a sofa again. Let me know what you decide! JC
