Laptop Backpack Made in USA from Tom Bihn!

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I have previously featured the Tom Bihn Aeronaut travel bag on this blog. Tom Bihn has made a name for themselves, manufacturing high-end fabric bags and cases in Seattle. Not only do they design and manufacture themselves, right in Seattle, they even source the fabric from the US.

I just came across the Synapse 25 laptop backpack from Tom Bihn. The word “luxury” and “backpack” are not usually two words that I associate, but after trying this bag out, that is the impression I was left with. Like the Aeronaut, this bag feels more like military grade crossed with Gucci than your standard backpack. The zippers are all covered on the outside. The padded laptop case is suspended from internal clips, as if your laptop is a $200,000 high-tech laser. The fabric is tough but doesn’t have that annoying roughness of most backpack fabrics.

Tom Bihn Synapse 25

Tom Bihn Synapse 25

Although the price tag is a little more than entry-level bags, this is obviously one you will luxuriate in having. I would not give a standard bag as a gift either, but this one definitely qualifies.

Osmium Men’s Shirts

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Osmium Sculptor White Dress Shirt

I recently had the pleasure of checking out another product from Osmium, this time the Sculptor off-white dress shirt.  This is a product that is a must for most men.  The mix of linen with the cotton gives the shirt a somewhat relaxed feel, yet it’s definitely dressy at the same time.  It goes well with a sportcoat, jeans, chinos, or slacks.

Osmium is a recently formed menswear clothing company.  It was founded by Mark Paigen, who also founded the legendary footwear maker, Chaco.  Osmium clothing is made in USA, from premium fabrics.

Stock Manufacturing Menswear

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Stock Mfg. Co. is a company out of Chicago that seems to be at the forefront of the new generation of American garment manufacturers.

They have a 40+ year-old, 19,000 square foot factory in a rugged neighborhood on the West Side, where they design and manufacture premium menswear.

They sell directly to the customer, without retail markups, and also collaborate every few weeks with some of the most creative people, in the fashion industry and beyond, on an exclusive piece. In order to eliminate costly overstock, they allow their customers, through a pre-sale, to determine how many pieces of these collaborations they will make.

Everything they manufacture is made using Military-Certified tailoring (they produce garments for the US Military as well), and constructed from premium fabrics, but still sold at affordable price-points, due to their customer-direct model.

They just premiered 11 new items exclusively on Kickstarter, with the proceeds from the campaign going to upgrading machinery at their factory, making them more nimble and efficient, and helping in their quest to create American jobs.

I recommend checking out their project, and at least spending 3 minutes to watch their video. It’s a really interesting glimpse into this new generation of makers, leveraging technology with old-school manufacturing.

LED Lightbulbs Assembled in USA?

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I was just shopping at Home Depot and ran across assembled in USA LED bulbs with the label “CREE” on them.  This is the second such time.  They appear to be a store brand and are priced at $9.95 for a 40 watt bulb, $12.95 for 60 watts.  I have no idea if they are just imported parts that are glommed together in the US so they can put the American flag on it or if there is some real work that has gone into it.  Here’s a link to it, but the specifications and description appear to make no mention of it.  I bought 5 or 6 of these and they seem good but I am not a specialist in this area.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Cree-6-Watt-40W-A19-Warm-White-2700K-LED-Light-Bulb-1-Pack-BA19-04527OMF-12DE26-1U100/203991778#.UWJQHn_n-lM

I’d appreciate any comments about the quality and creation of these bulbs!

Made in USA Gates and Fences

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I was looking for new side gates for my house and had resolved myself to paying a lot ($1500 and up) or getting something lame looking or something Chinese.  I then ran across Straight Gate Fence Co. They are located in the metro LA area and have been making gates since the 80′s.  This is really cool stuff – modern looking, easy to maintain or upgrade and seem quite durable.  The gate below is the one I’m getting and it costs about $650 installed.  Let’s see that topped by Chinese gates!

Modern Gate Made in USA

I will post more once I’ve had a chance to experience the gate myself.

Loggerhead Apparel

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Loggerhead Apparel is a South Carolina maker of coastal-lifestyle clothing for men and women, especially t-shirts.  The loggerhead turtle in the company’s logo symbolizes the company’s commitment of donating 10% of revenue from clothing sales to local causes supporting loggerhead turtle conservation efforts.  The coast of South Carolina is one of the turtle’s habitats.

As important as protecting the loggerhead turtle is, they strongly believe in supporting local manufacturing.  In fact, all aspects of production, including the cotton, is domestic.  The company’s signature product, the Bellwether Polo, is constructed of 100% American-grown Supima Cotton. The majority of manufacturing for Loggerhead Apparel takes place in several independently-owned facilities in South Carolina, with more than 100 years of combined experience in the textile and apparel industries. The brand also offers t-shirts, hats, belts and other accessories – all of which are manufactured in the United States.
Loggerhead Tshirt

KB Footwear Press Release

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE KB Footwear turns to crowdfunding as a way for small a company to raise capital.
Weirton, WV, January 31, 2013 – KB Footwear Company launched a Kickstarter.com campaign as a means to raise funds to increase production of their protective footwear boots and shoes.
We know all too well what happened to manufacturing in the USA – companies moved their manufacturing off-shore to countries like China, India, Vietnam, Indonesia and other places where labor is cheap. While this left tens of thousands of Americans without meaningful work, it also left many companies to go under. Their customers found that the products made off-shore didn’t hold muster to the quality their customers came to expect when made in the USA.
So the story of Knapp Shoe Company since 1921 went: Iron Age Corporation, a protective footwear company for over 190 years, purchased the Knapp Shoe Company. They moved all manufacturing to China. Then in 2007 they filed for bankruptcy and laid off more than 800 employees in the U.S.
With encouragement from a strong and loyal base of customers, some having worn Knapp Shoes their entire working career; Mr. Avram Grossman saved the product-line from going to the scrap heap by purchasing the tooling and patterns used to make the products. In 2010 he started manufacturing footwear as KB Footwear Company, a name which commemorates brothers Elwin and Clarence Knapp who founded the Knapp Shoe Company in 1921.
Avram Grossman stated – “manufacturing in the USA helps to strengthen the American economy. We are putting Americans back to work who are earning an income once again and can afford to spend their earnings on other American made products. And, we are making a top- quality product worn by Americans who are going back to work.”
To meet the growing demand for their footwear, KB Footwear has decided to turn to crowd source funding as a means to raise working capital. Crowdfunding is a proven and effective alternative to traditional angel investors, equity-based funding, and SBA and small business bank loans. Kickstarter.com is the biggest website for funding creative projects.
See the KB Footwear Kickstarter campaign at Kickstarter.com:
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/152453262/kb-footwear-work-and-safety-boots-and-shoes- made-i
KB Footwear Press Release.docx
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-    Continued –
KB Footwear Company, inc.
## #
About the company: KB Footwear Company manufactures a line of protective footwear, formerly known as Knapp Shoes. KBF is Made in America, Again ® using the original Knapp tooling and patterns that customers have come to trust since 1921.
Contact Information: Avram Grossman
President/CEO
7 Bayberry Way, Suite 200 Irvine, CA 92612-2727
E-mail: Phone: Website:
agrossman@kbfootwear.com 949-660-0450 x105 www.kbfootwear.com

Mindful Supply – Made in USA

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Mindful Supply is a partnership out of North Carolina with apparel industry people wanting to make a difference.  They are passionate about making clothes in America again and even use local cotton from the Carolinas for their shirts.  I tried out their t-shirts – they have great designs and a lovely feel to the fabric.  Check out the photo of one of their shirts:

Made in USA T shirt

If you take pride in what you wear, especially if you’re into your clothes carrying meaning, then Mindful Supply will probably suit your taste.

Travel Mugs and Water Bottles Made in USA

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Finding a travel mug for my coffee that is made in USA has been a special challenge and project for me.  I tried to find metal-lined mugs but they were all made in China and besides that, they frequently fell apart and didn’t tolerated the washing machine.  While traveling in Wyoming, I managed to find Yellowstone National Park-branded mugs.  The mug I got there was a bit too big to fit in the cupholder in my car, so I wanted to get a different one from the maker.  Whirleydrinkworks.com is the maker, so I tried to buy individual made in USA mugs from them.  Although they make plastic mugs in the US (and import the metal ones), they seem to supply only for large orders to retailers or as promotional items (such as at Yellowstone).  My requests for American-made travel mugs from them were ignored.  I had the same luck with a couple other such domestic manufacturers.

Then I went on ebay and searched from made in USA travel mug.  I found this one. It has been a good mug but I think that it was a made as a promotional item by one of these manufacturers.  Why can’t we buy such mugs from retailers??  Someone please comment!

Water bottles that are made in USA I’ve had a bit more luck with.  Polar Bottle contacted me recently and their sample bottle is nice both sturdy, light and has a cool design.  Take a look at a photo from their website below.  REI even has a made in USA water bottles section.  So there should be no trouble finding Made in USA water bottles online.

Polar Water Bottle Made in USA

Joseph Abboud Men’s Clothing

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There are more and more start-up men’s clothing makers that are producing in the US, such as Osmium clothing and Alex Maine.  However, Joseph Abboud has been around as a fashion label since 1986 when it was launched by its namesake.  Although I can’t say if all of their clothing has always been made in USA, it seems that every time I run into it, it is.  Although J.A. is no longer the owner of the company, the name lives on, as with Chanel.

My relationship with Joseph Abboud started when I purchased a tuxedo for my wedding at Bloomingdale’s in 2005.  It was a great suit and I’ve used it many times since.  I have since kept JA in mind when other suit purchases have come up.  In fact, I bought a pinstripe 3 button Joseph Abboud suit a couple of years ago and love it.  Now I just got a casual blazer from Joseph Abboud that is fantastic.  All of these have been made in USA.  Per their website, all of the JA clothing is made in their Massachusetts factory.  The new fashion line is titled “The New Made in America” so they seem to hold domestic manufacturing dearly and it is an integral part of their philosophy.

Made in USA Mens Blazer