Method for molding lofted material with laminated support layer and garment made

A method for molding a lofted assembly comprising the steps of:

• positioning a support fabric on a lofted material;
• laminating said support fabric to said lofted material to form said lofted assembly;
• positioning said lofted assembly in a molding apparatus having at least a first mold and a second mold, said first mold having a surface with a projecting element and a first level portion and said second mold having a surface with a recessed element and second level portion, said projecting element being formed to fit in said recessed element when said first mold and said second mold are brought into relatively close relation;
• closing together said first mold and said second mold thereby sandwiching said lofted material between said first level portion and said second level portion while maintaining a uniform preset gap between said projecting element and said recessed element so that the inherent loft characteristics of said lofted material are substantially preserved;
• and
• opening in relation to each other said first mold and said second mold, or vice-versa, and removing the molded lofted material from said apparatus.