Puffy Kachula: multipurpose comfort

February 1, 2018  |  Projects

What do you get when you mix a highly functional outdoor blanket with a puffy jacket? How about a blanket that is fashionable enough to wear as a wrap, yet practical enough to keep you warm and cozy in all kinds of conditions? That’s the idea behind the Puffy Kachula, a new design from Coalatree, …
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Solar jacket charges itself to glow

February 1, 2018  |  Projects

Nick and Steve Tidball, twin brothers and founders of Vollebak, have created a jacket made from material that can be charged to glow in the dark by exposing it to almost any light source. The Solar Charged Jacket stores light to glow in the dark, and protects from driving rain and winds. The company…
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Exo-skeleton supports overhead work

February 1, 2018  |  Projects

Workers who must raise their arms over their heads for long periods of time know how strenuous it can be. Even though many companies have eliminated long-term overhead work, in some industries it can’t be avoided. To aid workers who deal with this type of manual labor long term, the Hohenstein Ins…
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Folded fabric sculpture

February 1, 2018  |  Projects

The London Design Festival is an annual event that promotes London as the design capital of the world. It showcases the exciting and often cutting-edge work of artists, architects and designers at exhibits and installations in locations around the city. The Victoria & Albert Museum, the world’…
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Acquisitions reshape the U.S. tent and event rental industry

February 1, 2018  |  Markets

A wave of acquisitions reshaped the U.S. tent and event rental industry in 2017 Beginning in 2016 and accelerating the pace in spring and summer of 2017, several recapitalized tent rental companies acquired other like-businesses. The break-up of the Classic Party Rentals network, based in Inglewood,…
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Building facades and vertical shade

February 1, 2018  |  Features

For decades now, since the revelation of the 1970s back-to-earth, energy enlightenment era of oil embargoes and the beginning of the environmentalism movement, architects and government officials have acknowledged the importance of making ever more energy-efficient buildings. It has been proven that…
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Fabrics that store information

February 1, 2018  |  Projects

One day soon, the most sought-after feature in a new jacket may not be the style, color or its ability to keep you warm—it may be the garment’s unique capability to store information. Researchers at the University of Washington are using off-the-shelf conductive thread to create fabrics and fa…
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Immigration art in Minnesota skyways

February 1, 2018  |  Projects

The U.S. is a nation of immigrants. The call to “huddled masses, yearning to breathe free” has been a source of inspiration for people around the world to emigrate for a better life. Artist Nancy Ann Coyne wanted to explore the meaning of home for immigrants in Minnesota. A native New Yorker, Co…
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Glen Raven installs solar array

February 1, 2018  |  Industry News

Glen Raven installs a large solar array as part of its commitment to sustainability For textile manufacturers that operate energy-intensive machinery, solar-generated energy provides a way to save on energy bills and reduce carbon footprint. Glen Raven Custom Fabrics LLC, best known as the makers of…
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The business of yurts: round architecture

February 1, 2018  |  Features, Perspective

I never had an interest in going into business to just duplicate a product that already existed,” says Alan Bair, founder and owner of Pacific Yurts Inc. in Cottage Grove, Ore. “But early on I realized the yurt is a unique warm space that is limited only by the imagination. When you go into tha…
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