Retro and reclaimed.

Fun items reclaimed and rescued from the recycling center.  Oh the possibilities.

Be Inspired. Be Bold.

peace&love

Rebecca

ITMA Textile Industry Tour.. Day two

On the second day we visited Bennettsville Printing, a screen printing mill.  I have always been interested in how mass production screen printing worked.  Instead of a flat screen they are on rollers.  They still use photo emulsion, although in the past couple years instead of light setting they use a laser cutter to create the images.

All of their inks are custom mixed, just like paint at the hardware store.  Pigment is added to a gum base to give the right consistency for printing.

All the rollers are set up, each with a different layer.  They can go up to 16 layers.  The ink flows from the inside which are pumped in from the buckets in the back.  They average at 34 yards per minute.

The fabric then goes through a series of drying, washing and chemical processes to set the ink and apply various finishes, depending on the end use.

Our second stop of the day was to Miles Talbott, a furniture manufacturer.  They have a vast catalogue of furniture and fabric.  Once the fabric is selected it is either hand cut or laser cut.

All the pieces are laid out on the computer to maximize waste from the cuts, but it is also important to match up the pattern where the pieces meet so there is a technician adjusting the pattern on the fabric before it is cut.

In the wood shop, hardwood is now predominently replaced with engineered hardwood and now the wood is cut with a machine versus hand cut.  Being in a furniture class I would have liked to see some hand craftsmanship but that seems to be fading away in the mass production furniture industry.

A wide variety of styles with some beautiful details and finishes.

Eight way tied, all hand tied for maximum quality.

The upholstery, what I am the most interested in.

It was so cool to see a fabric and a piece of wood turn into a finished piece of furniture all in an hours time (not a single piece but the process!) I'm inspired now to see how my shills can translate into furniture making.

Be Inspired. Be Bold.

peace&love

Rebecca

ITMA Textile Industry Tour.. Day one

Our first stop on our ITMA educational industry tour was Valdese, the largest jacquard factory in the United States. This factory does everything from designing textiles to custom vat dyeing of the yarns to the weaving itself. The factory is filled with jacquard looms that hum along pumping out textiles.

Bolts of yarns ready to be dyed.

Bolts of yarns stacked to be vat dyed.

Bolts of yarn in the vat dyes.

The jacquard looms at work.

Some of the textiles being produced.

The extra selvedge being stripped off and recycled.

The selvedge and extra selvedge.

Some of the final products. Great textures and patterns being produced.

Our next stop was Wesley Mancini. His studio is located in Charlotte, NC. The studio was rustic, moder and inspiring. Their vast collection and library of textiles are references for new and contemporary patterns and textures. All of their designs are translated into jacquard textiles and tapestries.

Samples of yarns for their hand knotted rug collection. A lot of time and creativity goes into rug design.

Animals filled the studio creating a fun and energetic environment.

It was very inspiring to see the design process and the production of the textiles. All of the elements of the industry are starting to piece together. 

Be Inspired. Be Bold. 

peace&love

Rebecca