Living · 6 pages · 12 min
How wool felts
Wool scales ratchet the fibers together when heat, moisture, and rubbing all act at once.
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From the opening
Wool felts because each fiber carries microscopic scales that point one way. When the fiber is wet, warm, and rubbed, it creeps more easily in one direction than the other, and the scales lock so the mass cannot return to a loose yarn. The opening covers scales make a one-way ratchet, heat, water, and rubbing together, and fulling is felting done on purpose.
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Inside
- Scales make a one-way ratchet
- Heat, water, and rubbing together
- Fulling is felting done on purpose
- A cool still soak is not enough
- Where the idea stops applying
- A distinction worth keeping
Sources
- Directional frictional effect of wool scales
- Felting and fulling of wool cloth