Two words sum of Brahms Mount – feel and quality.  It all start back in 1983 when husband and wife due Claudia Brahms and Noel Mount launched the natural fiber textile brand.  Ready to move on with their lives they sold the company to David Kaufman; in 2009 that sale included a staff of just 5 working out of a mill in Hallowell on the Kennebec River in Maine.

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Passionate about the feel of the product, he moved operations to Freeport which helped to not only solidify the company’s role in Maine’s textile manufacturing historty but give the brand presence in the biggest tourist town in New England.

Now well established, keeping up with production is the biggest challenge, and speaking of … looking at the greasy gears of their 70 + yr old looms, it’s hard to imagine that beautiful cotton blankets that cost over $600 come off them, yet these are the heart of the business.

In an age where other manufacturers have chosen China, which could certainly produce these blankets probably 5 x faster and cheaper on digital looms, the decades old Brahms Mount looms result in a dramatically different product.  They don’t joke when they say ‘lasts a lifetime’.Using up to 1200 yarns per blanket, they come off the loom with a closed selvage or seam, meaning no borders or edging necessary; this allows for stronger construction which differentiates the blankets from their overseas competitors dramatically.  Touched 50 times before they leave the plant, the yarns in each blanket are hand-tied to one of the 6 operating looms; that process alone can take two hours. Once they are ready to run through the looms, master weaver John Smith attends to each blanket to ensure every fiber is in the right place.

One person touching every blanket?!  But why? 

Smith was trained by the original owners and his skill set is critical.  With such old machinery, they do break from time to time and you just can’t order a part, rather  have to have it made but it’s worth any production delay.

The beauty of the finished product rests on their old-fashioned construction and skills, old-world techniques which Smith must instill in his staff to continue to grow.  That however takes between 1 and 8 months to do; trying to find people who are able to sew in this day and age is a whole other story!

Many brands were started by a family, but looking at their composition today that has trailed off.  Similarly living in the same town as your parents let alone working alongside each other in any business is a rarity in today’s world.  Brahms Mount, however, is one exception to that rule.  They are rebuilding Maine’s mill town model where families lived for generations and sons and daughters followed their parents into the mill. This time around however, the children are doing it because they want to, not because they have to.  How cool is that?!

Made in the USA and like no other, here’s a behind the scenes glimpse:

If you’re heading to Maine stop by their store in Freeport

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