IMPORT & EXPORT
Import Scares, Supply-Chain Snares—How to Navigate Tariff Uncertainty
By Dorothy Crouch, Contributing Writer | September 19, 2025
California Apparel News asked experts in fiber, yarn and fabric: How have you navigated through proposed and implemented tariffs that impact your business from raw materials to finished goods?
TEXTILE TRENDS
Electric Avenue
Fuchsia can be a polarizing color if only because no one can ever remember how to spell it. But these electric fuchsias beckon to be tried by all due to their ability to inject electric energy into whatever you’re wearing. It’s all but guaranteed to shock your mood back to the positive spectrum should it dip.
Frozen in Amber
Amber has the ability to fossilize ancient life forms (remember “Jurassic Park”?), and in the coming seasons you’ll see it crystallize fashion as well. These warm honey shades speak of positivity and remind us that amber has been used for millennia in oils, perfumes and incense to raise our spirits.
Celestial Aura
Blue is the color of heaven, whether on a sunlit day or in the dark indigo of night. As a result, it’s always a soothing color capable of conveying stability, as in a navy blazer, or more-dynamic feelings. These blues are as happy as a perennial summer sky but are often adorned with modern motifs.
NEWS
Show-in-a-Box by Preface Provides Tactile Experience for Virtual Textile Event
After a few years hosting a boutique-style textile show in New York, Preface launched its Los Angeles edition early in 2020 during January L.A. Market Week to a responsive group of attendees who were seeking a more-intimate fabric event. Since then, Betsy Franjola, founder of BFF Studio and Preface, began to cultivate a fresh approach to events during the COVID-19 stay-at-home orders. By thinking outside the trade-show floor, Franjola developed a concept by thinking inside the box.
Pantone’s 2021 Color of the Year Features Two Hues That Speak to Strength and Hope
For its annual announcement, the color-and-trend-forecasting authority Pantone unveiled its 2021 Color of the Year, which is actually two different yet harmonious hues that are meant to complement each other.
Walking the Line Between Necessity and Creativity
The world we know is undergoing a necessary transformation, speeding up toward more-responsible consumption. Faced with this new economic and ethical crisis, we must think about tomorrow’s fashions, which we are no longer compelled to endlessly reinvent.
CFMB Criterion From Textile Exchange Outlines Environmental Impact
The sustainable-fiber-and-materials-sourcing nonprofit Textile Exchange announced Dec. 2 that it is introducing a new criterion to its Corporate Fibers & Materials Benchmark that will afford greater insight regarding the impact on biodiversity caused by apparel companies.
The Dawn of New Design Trends as Apparel Consumption Is Reassessed
The times we’re experiencing—the sign of profound transformation—questions the excess of yesterday and pushes us to take a new look at how we consume. Conscious of society’s upheavals and changes in the environment, we see a return to reassuring, enduring values and a desire for transparency and ethics to help us consume less and better.
Bolt Threads Makes Big Partnership Announcement
Weeks of teaser posts appeared on the Instagram account for Bolt Threads, the biotechnology materials company founded in 2009, prior to the company’s big announcement on Oct. 2 that it would be joining forces with a few enormous brands to form The Mylo Consortium.
Lenzing Announces Tencel Carbon Zero During Climate Week NYC
Expanding on its commitment to cultivating a responsible supply chain within the apparel industry, Lenzing announced during Climate Week NYC that in September it launched carbon-zero Tencel fibers.
Lenzing and Hyosung Partner to Unveil Home Everywhere
Prominent fabric companies Lenzing and Hyosung have joined forces to develop the Home Everywhere collection, which will offer more-sustainable product and textile innovations, said Andreas Guertler, Lenzing’s senior manager of global business development active sportswear.
New in Knits: Cozy Layers in Luxurious Fabrications and Ethical Materials
This season, knits are layered and wrap us in minimalist luxury, creating a comforting cocoon adapted to the current context.
Recent Innovations in Fiber Composition and Dyeing Serve Ecological Purposes
Recently, manufacturers of materials made from and processes used to treat fibers that are used in outdoor, active and athleisure apparel have made advancements that allow consumers to feel more confident that their purchasing decisions will look good and also contribute to a healthier earth and potentially reduce threats to the environment.
Fall 2021 Blends Structure and Athleisure in Rich Hues With Pops of Dramatic Color
This season is marked by the liberating and positive force of color, which is something we feel more than we understand.
Rubin Schubert, 74: L.A. Textile King Passes Away Leaving a Legacy of Sustainable Sourcing
The old saying “legends never die” might be true, but the recent passing of downtown Los Angeles Ragfinders founder Rubin Schubert proves that legendary fashion personalities take a piece of all who know them when they leave.
From Trend-driven to Traditional, Swim Textiles Have It Covered
Straight-forward classics and abstract patterns afford an array of options in swimwear sourcing.
Back to the Beach or Lying Poolside 2021 Makes an Impression
Whether found in acid pop, athletic and sexy, sporty ’80s or craft summer, beachwear in 2021 makes a statement.
