Fulling
a process by which cloth made of a felting fiber is condensed, strengthened, and thickened, with a loss of width and length (see FELT). In felting, the fibers-wool, for instance-slip past each other, and their toothed edges interlock, so that a continuation of the process causes them to be more and more intimately associated. The cloth is folded or rolled and treated with soapy water.
It is then beaten with wooden mallets, by which the serrated edges are forced past each other and the fibers closely commingled. Precautions are taken in some cases to prevent adherence of the folds of cloth by felting together. For this pur- FULMINATE pose cotton cloth is sometimes put between the folds of woolen cloth. Fulling and felting are dependent upon the same principle. Felted cloth is made by associating the fibers, and is not woven. Woven cloth exposed to the fulling or felting action is said to be milled. Repetition of the process constitutes it double milled or treble milled, as the case may be. Each milling thickens and solidifies the cloth while diminishing its quantity.