fulling

Beating wet fabric

Fulling is a step in processing wool cloth, where the fabric is beaten, pressed, and soaked to shrink and thicken it.

The process creates a denser, more weather-resistant material by matting the fibers together.

Before industrial machinery, cloth was fulled by pounding it in water, sometimes with human feet—hence the surname Fuller.

process

felting

Compacting fibers through agitation

mattingWoven protective surface
thickeningIncreasing in density
densificationIncreasing mass per volume

compression · shrinking · pounding · beating · scouring · cleansing · agitation · consolidation · compaction · softening

textile

wool

Sheared animal fiber

clothWoven or knit material
broadclothDense plain-weave fabric
kerseyCoarse ribbed wool cloth

serge · tweed · felt · fabric · fleece · fiber · woven · yarn · weft · warp

historical

mills

Factories or grinders

waterwheelRiver-powered rotating mechanism
fullersTextile finishing workers
tuckersNeck-covering garment panels

walkers · medieval · guilds · clothiers · urine · teasel · drapery · industrialization · cottage industry · trade

equipment

stocks

Ownership stakes or inventory

hammersHeavy-headed striking tools
troughOpen container for animal feed
vatLarge liquid container

beetle · mallet · paddles · rollers · clay · lye · soap · water · teasel · napping

Opposites

textile process stage

fullingweaving

Interlacing strands into fabric

spinning · dyeing · carding · combing · warping

effect on fabric structure

fullingstretching

Extending muscles or material

napping · raising · calendering · unraveling · loosening

Family

full, miller, milling, fuller, fullest, overfull

Familiarity: Top 1,000,000
Profile: Used worldwide · Timeless · Concrete · Rated G