SUPREME QUILTING and STITCHING
A couple of Months ago I took a commission for a chesterfield overcoat.It was to be made from a Dormeuil wool and Cashmere. Modern overcoat cloths especially luxury ones tend to be a lot lighter these days and this one at 16oz was no exception, my client wanted the luxury cloth but the warmth of a very "heavy coat". On the spot I suggested that we quilt the overcoat and make a detachable liner to be worn when a suit was not under the coat. This was all new for me but as a designer and someone with a can do attitude I got to work on it right away. I had leads in Italy and China but after a quick search I was able to find a small factory near the Graham stop in Brooklyn. Supreme quilting and stitching has been around for over 50 years. Having met Joe the current owner he explained that he was the last of dozens of quilting factories in Brooklyn and that he had taken over from his father who had previously ran the business.
Joe did a fantastic job quilting two yards of irridesent lining from Isles textiles for the overcoat. There where a few challenges to making this work though namely the filler had to be iron safe to take the heat from the pressing and final finishing that goes into a traditionally contructed David Reeves garment. If the filler was not iron safe it would melt and solidify inside the coat! another issue was movement within the coat, I decided not to quilt the sleeves but to use a heavy cotton/viscose overcoat lining to provide warmth and movement.
I will hopefully be doing a post about the coat itself in detail (as well s the detachable liner which has evolved into a gilet) soon but in the meantime I would like to put a shout out to Joe and his crew at 406 Manhattan Ave Brooklyn. If you are a designer, Artist or student working on a project with quilting I would urge you to give them a try. I myself will certainly be working with them in the future and offering this new facility to my clients.
The Factory:
