Los Angeles International Textiles show

Im really bummed that my camera was not working for this experience, so I dont have any images, but I do have a lot to talk about!
     One of the days that we were in Los Angeles, we were fortunate to attend the textiles show. This event is important for many mills that wish for their products to be purchased by manufacturers in their garments and home furnishings. Any mill can have a booth, as long as they can pay the fee. The fee to participate in the show varies depending on location and size. There are also booths that offer findings as well.
     Our first stop was to Lenzing fibers. Lenzing has been producing fibers for 75 years and are based out of Austria. The first fiber they produced was viscose rayon. They are vertically integrated and were the first to implement sustainability in their factories. They do not grow and harvest the beechwood tree (which modal is made from) or the Eucalyptus tree (makes Tencel). They use the trees there and let the resources replenish on their own.
     Tencel is a fiber that Lenzing is very excited about. It is the strongest man made fiber and they have been producing it for 20 years. The trees are turned into a pulp and is shipped to their facility in Austria, where it is converted into yarns or other uses. Here are a few qualities of Tencel:

• It wicks moisture
• It inhibits bacterial growth
• It is smooth to the touch
• It is antistatic
• It can be used in both knits and wovens

Lenzing makes a wide variety of fibers used in textiles. Here is a link to the Lenzing website, if you want to Learn about Lenzing fibers! This is the main page, click on a particular fiber to learn more! Take a look around the site and learn about other uses for their fibers!

    We also toured the booths at the show and learned there were multiple textile options at this show. The first thing we saw were beautiful laces and luxury fabrics. Mostly textiles used for bridal and formal wear. The fabrics we saw cost up to $300.00 a yard. It helps one understand how wedding gowns end up costing so much. These fabrics were so ornate and beautiful, I was jealous. ( My wedding gown was made of polyester- it's what I could afford!)

     The most interesting thing that I personally learned was that you could purchase textile graphics alone. There were companies that designed images and prints that you could purchase and use forever. You owned the rights to that design. There was a whole section dedicated to people providing this service.