Quote Originally Posted by fluter View Post
Brief description in Wikipedia is accurate as as far as I know. Historical descriptions are quite colorful.

I think the result is similar to felting a knitted fabric (as for a tam), making it denser and thicker. If you've ever seen a wool sweater that was machine-washed at too high a temperature, that's felting!
Fluter, many thanks for the reference. It makes really fascinating reading and gives me a greater appreciation for the process of making tartan fabric from wool.