TEF Braids is an Athol, New York micro-factory that turns heritage Jacquard lace-braiding machines into digital manufacturing systems for three-dimensional, tension-distributive textile structures. Founded around Brad Jamison’s 2004 search for mesh for oversized shuttlecocks, the company now makes custom patterned materials and develops Tensengral bodywear and footwear from its proprietary filament patterns. Jamison is described as the sole master lace-braider in the United States and has created more than 1,000 original patterns.
Gladding Braided Products, IncSince 1816, Gladding Braided Products has made braided cord, wire, and cable, developing custom braids for demanding applications from defense and aerospace to industrial equipment. The South Otselic manufacturer operates a 100,000-square-foot factory with more than 2,000 braiding machines and produces over two million feet of braided material a day. Its long history includes supplying braided materials for the Apollo space program, while its parachute cord was later used in the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s Colorscape installation.SOUTH OTSELIC, NY
Bally Ribbon MillsSince its founding in 1923 as a silk-weaving company, Bally Ribbon Mills has grown into an American manufacturer known for solving demanding textile design problems. Based in Bally, Pennsylvania, its nearly 300 certified employees draw on more than 70 years of hands-on weaving experience to develop specialized woven materials for customers in fields such as aerospace and medical equipment. The company’s work includes advanced 3-D woven structures, including a quartz material developed with NASA for Orion spacecraft components.313220BALLY, PA
Chapas Textiles, IncFrom its Brooklyn studio, Chapas Textiles creates bespoke hand-woven fabrics for the interiors trade, tailoring each pattern, color and yardage to a specific project. Founded by hand weaver Tara Chapas in 2008, the studio draws on a family weaving tradition from Evoia, Greece, while its fabrics are made in the United States by trained American artisans. Its project-by-project collaboration connects interior designers directly with textile artisans, and a portion of profits supports small-business loans for artisans around the world.BROOKLYN, NY
Be Inthavong, LLCFor more than a century, Be Inthavong’s family has preserved the Lao tradition of silk weaving, a heritage the Vientiane-born designer now reinterprets through his own textile company. After apprenticing on his family’s looms in Laos, Inthavong developed a rare process that handlooms micro-strips of leather into silk, creating fabrics for fashion and interior applications. The company received the 2013 International Product Design Awards’ best textile honor in London.NEW YORK CITY, NY