Nylon Fabric Mills Directory

The Nylon Families

Nylon (polyamide) fibre is melt-spun into filaments of remarkable tenacity, then woven or knitted into cloth that is light, abrasion-resistant, quick to dry and easy to dye in deep shades. The woven workhorses are taffeta and ripstop — the latter with its heavier grid yarns that stop a tear at the next check — and textured taslan, whose air-jet bulked yarns give a softer, cotton-like hand for jackets and shorts. Heavy denier weaves in the Cordura tradition serve luggage, workwear and upholstery. On the knit side, nylon tricot and sheer nets and tulles run from linings and lingerie to bridal illusion, and nylon-elastane blends power swimwear, hosiery and stretch linings.

The properties cut both ways and are worth knowing plainly. Nylon is stronger wet than most fibres and shrugs off mildew and alkalis, but it melts rather than chars under heat, degrades slowly in strong sunlight unless stabilised, and builds static. It takes dye beautifully — including acid dyes shared with wool and silk — which is why nylon cloth anchors colour-critical uses like flags, team kit and swimwear. This site's Nylon Fiber page covers the fibre itself, and the Nylon Search page gathers the site's nylon resources.

The Mills Listed Here

Seven manufacturers make up this directory. Annabel, Inc (Canada) supplies nylon velvets, flock, micro and faux suede and printed or embossed fabrics for upholstery, military and transport work; Bokwang Co., Ltd. (Korea) manufactures nylon and nylon/polyester blend fabrics; B & R Textile (USA) converts custom woven greige goods including nylon for garment manufacturers; Jerse Örme Industry & Trading, Inc (Turkey) is a vertically integrated circular knitter running nylon among many fibres; Rhode Island Textile Co (USA) manufactures rigid and elastic narrow fabrics from nylon among its fibres; Satyam Nonwovens Pvt., Ltd (India) makes needle-punched and chemically bonded nonwovens including nylon blends; and Nuwa Textiles is listed through its Fabric Mills by Name profile.

Read together, the list shows nylon's range in one page: velvets and suedes at the decorative end, circular knits and narrow elastic fabrics in the garment middle, and industrial nonwovens underneath. Below the listings, the full fabric directory menu links every fabric family in this section. Thank you for using the Apparel Search Fabric Mill Directory.

Buying and Caring for Nylon Fabric

Specify nylon by denier and construction: the denier sets filament weight and therefore strength and opacity, and the weave or knit decides the rest. For outdoor and luggage cloth, ask whether the yarn is solution-dyed or UV-stabilised if the product will live in sunlight, and check coatings — polyurethane and silicone coatings add water resistance but change hand and ageing. In the workroom, nylon sews cleanly but slips; use a microtex or universal needle in good condition, hold seams against its low friction, and keep irons low, since nylon softens and glazes well below cotton temperatures. Finished nylon garments wash easily and dry fast; avoid high tumble heat, and remember that nylon's static invites lint, so wash dark nylon with its own kind.

A note on names, because buyers meet both: nylon 6 and nylon 6,6 are the two commercial polyamides, close in behaviour, with 6,6 slightly harder and higher-melting and 6 slightly softer and easier to dye. Most fabric listings do not distinguish them, and for most apparel purposes either serves; technical buyers specifying heat or abrasion limits should ask which polymer a mill is actually running.

Nylon Fabric Manufacturers Listed Here