Behind Our Fabrics
Tessilmaglia Mill
EST. 1982
Region Veneto, Italy
Employees 30
Est. 1982
Owned Tessilmaglia S.R.L
Mill type Cotton
Fabrics Jersey, Piqué
Crafting unique knitted fabrics with quality and creativity at heart for over 40 years.
Founded in 1982 in the province of Treviso—just minutes from Venice—the Tessilmaglia mill has established itself as a powerhouse of richly knitted fabrics, primarily in fine Egyptian cotton. Its balance of specialized looms, traditional craftsmanship, and modern innovation has given way to some of the world’s finest Jacquard, jersey fabrics, and piqué weaves.
This family-run weaver has blended the traditional expertise of older generations with the creative evolution of younger ones to create the dynamic shirt textures we proudly feature in our collection.
Why Suitsupply & Tessilmaglia Goes Hand-in-Hand
Among this esteemed weaver’s most desired offerings are their jersey and piqué-knit fabrics, which offer some of the most unique textures, functionalities, color dynamics and hand feels of all fabrics.
Jersey
Originally named after the heavy, yet soft and naturally stretchy knitted fabrics worn by the fishermen of Jersey, in the Channel Islands, “jersey” fabric first took to the world stage when Coco Chanel started using it for women’s attire in 1916.
Thanks to its elasticity and light weight, it has been adopted for everything from luxury outerwear to athletic and leisurewear. Jersey fabric is not actually woven on a loom, but is a weft knit—meaning it’s knitted on a single set of needles with all loops meshing in a single direction. Because it’s a knitted fabric, Tessilmaglia uses specialized machines that employ a series of needles & hooks to intertwine a single yarn to form loops, one next to another, in a single row. To create this unique fabric finish, special “stretch needles” are used. Featuring a blunt rounded tip (to avoid damaging the fabric) these specialized needles are necessary to retain the elasticity and stretch of jersey fabric.
Piqué
Also known as a “marcella” knit, piqué first came to prominence through the Lancashire cotton industry in the late 18th century. Derived from the French word “Piquer”, which means “quilt”, knitted piqué features a grained surface on the face and plain, single jersey on the other side (known as the lining), and was originally used to make imitations of the corded Provençal quilts made in Marseille. Today, this style is most commonly associated with our polo shirts.
Though available as both a woven and knitted style, Tessilmaglia specializes in knitted piquet, which it crafts on specialized looms. Featuring twice as many threads on the top layer than on the bottom, they use a “double-knit” process to create a rich, dense fabric where the two layers of fabric are knitted at the same time. This contrast between the heavier top layer and finer inner layer creates the signature “waffle” texture this fabric is known for.
Natural Craftsmanship
Nestled at the foot of Italy’s dolomites, Tessilmaglia takes advantage of its natural surroundings, using mountain waters for the washing of its fabrics. This allows them to forgo chemicals, as the mineral rich waters of the nearby Piave River act as a natural softener. Moreover, in keeping with their commitment to eco-friendly quality, all of their fabrics are created with certified organic raw material, and are shrinkage-tested for accuracy in measurements, minimizing waste.
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