Making Noise at the NY Market

By Staff -- Home Textiles Today, 10/31/2005 12:00:00 AM

From the New York Market —

Here are some bits and bites of news that came out of market.

• American Dawn Inc. added several constructions to its bath towel line. They include: sheared cotton viscose terries; bamboo towels from Turkey; two-ply Turkish cotton; velour textures; zero-twist from Pakistan; three-ply bath sheets from India; rayon-cotton jacquards; and jacquards with lace inserts.

• Avanti Linens targeted a younger customer with a collection of embellished bath towels that represents a different design direction and a spice colorway for the company. Via this collection, Avanti is employing embellishments like four-sided banding, crochet work, pom-pom fringes, grommets and buttons to its designs.

• Bardwil Industries continued to build its kitchen textiles program with the addition of three-piece and five-piece sets. The three-piece sets are all jacquard and include one pot holder and two kitchen towels. The five-piece sets include five kitchen towels, available in jacquard or terry fabrications.

• Capel Inc. showed a new generation of braided rugs, modernized from the traditional look. Titled Shadow Box, this collection comes in a concentric braided construction, available in various fabrications. These include cotton chenille, wool blends, poly blends and 100 percent wool. Shadow Box's palette borrows from the company's most popular colorways. The concentric braid construction was also used in an addition to the company's Bob Timberlake licensed program. This design is titled Beachcomber and is made in a heavyweight cotton-and-wool blend.

• Creative Bath expanded its metal bath caddy program with new finishes and designs. Each group consists of a pole caddy, tote, shower head caddy, towel holder, bowl brush holder and toilet tissue holder. The company also added domestically made step pails for the bath. And the company is expanding its housewares offerings with many items, including vacuum-sealed food storage containers, plastic storage bins, plastic serving sets and other goods.

• Ex-Cell Home Fashions has created a way to more fashionably hang soft window coverings. Pleated grommets allow for panels to slide through curtain rods without gapping at the top in between hooks. Also new are button tab-top panels made on a 300-count cotton sateen. This button tab variety offers the option of a traditional rod pocket that is hidden behind the button tabs.

• Foreston Trends stepped into the scatter rug category with its Reed collection of bamboo and natural fiber mats. Available in two sizes — 22-by-34 and 30-by-50 — these mats come in six styles and feature fabric borders in different solid colors as well as pin-dot non-skid backing. They coordinate with a collection of placemats. The rugs are set to retail for $9.99 and $16.99.

• Home Fashions International's decorative pillow division expanded its back-to-school and tweener offerings with a smart palette of bright hues — lime, teal, orange, purple, pink — in various fabrications. The company currently carries 12 designs but expects to grow that count to 40 by February. The line comprises 20-inch squares and large floor cushions. Price points range from $9.99 to $19.99.

• Maples Industries continued to use new technology for its cotton offerings. This market it showed two bath rug collections in solid and patterned styles — Cambria and Carolina. They are set to retail between $19.99 and $39.99.

• Natco Home continued to build its rug division this market with the addition of hand-tufted collection. Natural Inspiration comprises area and accent rugs made of wool with viscose or polyester-and-acrylic blends.

• Nourison expanded its Interlude collection of hand-hooked, hand-tufted, high-low constructed area and accent rugs — all of which are washable. There are about 20 designs, many in pastel and cool colorways. Designs are retro, geometric and transitional florals. A 2-by-3 is set to retail for $29.99.

• Town and Country Living recently upgraded its design direction adding more upscale looks and fabrications to its dec pillow line, which has typically trended toward casual looks. The new collection covers seven lifestyles: luxury, romance, casual elegance, Santa Fe, Africa, avant guard and global classics. “We are using a lot of silk, textured chenilles, leather, flocked velvet, metallicized corduroy, boucles and laser-cut suedes,” said Arthur Greenspan, vice president of dec pillows. Price points range from $9.99 to $29.99.

• Venus Home developed a jersey knit bedding collection that has been dressed up with jacquard trims, embroidered hems and gathered hems. The sheets are 160 gsm and are made of Egyptian cotton. They come in four solid colors, five heathered colors and one multi stripe that incorporates the same colors from the solid offerings. As an alternative to shams, the collection coordinates with woven pillow cases donning knit trims. And the whole line coordinates with a reversible, Turkish bath towel collection called Catch.