Fustian is a variety of heavy cloth woven from cotton, chiefly prepared for menswear. It is also used figuratively to refer to pompous, inflated or pretentious writing or speech, from at least the time of Shakespeare. This literary use is because the cloth type was often used as padding, hence, the purposeless words are fustian.
Known in Late Latin as fustaneum [1] or fustanum [2] [3] and in Medieval Latin as pannus fustāneus ('fustian cloth') or tela fustānea ('fustian mesh'), [4] the cloth is possibly named after the Egyptian city of Fustat near Cairo that manufactured such a material. [1] [4]
It embraces plain twilled cloth known as jean, and cut fabrics similar to velvet, known as velveteen, moleskin, corduroy etc. The original medieval fustian was a stout but respectable cloth with a cotton weft and a linen warp. [5] The term seems to have quickly become less precise, and was applied to a coarse cloth made of wool and linen, and in the reign of Edward III of England, the name was given to a woollen fabric. By the early 20th century, fustians were usually of cotton dyed various colours. [6]
In a petition to Parliament during the reign of Mary I, "fustian of Naples" is mentioned. In the 13th and 14th centuries priests' robes and women's dresses were made of fustian, but though dresses are still made from some kinds, the chief use is for labourers' clothes. [6] From the mid 1600s to the mid 1700s, fustian was often used for bed hangings. [7] : 105
Fustian, by the 1860s, referred to any cut weft cotton fabric, and its manufacture was common in towns of the fringe of the Lancashire cotton region, such as Congleton in Cheshire, Mow Cop in Staffordshire and Heptonstall in Calderdale. From 1800 to 1850 it was commonly called Baragan Fustian, and much used in Australia.
Fustian cutting was a laborious process using a fustian cutting knife. This tool was around 50 centimetres (20 in) long, and looked like a long spike; about 10 centimetres (3.9 in) from the tip, the top edge was sharpened into a blade. It was inserted along the fabric alongside two warp threads, and under the raised weft, and as it was guided forward the blade severed the weft. In corduroy, there were seven ridges to the inch, so along a 31-inch (790 mm) bolt, there would be about 320 cuts to be done. [8]
In the 1860s, the cloth would be stretched over a 22-yard-long (20 m) table, and the cutters would walk the length of the table as many times as was necessary. In recent times the cloth was tensioned over a 6-foot (1.8 m) table where all the cuts were made, and then the cloth would be released and the next two yards tensioned onto the table. Over a 60-hour week the cutter would be expected to produce 500 yards (460 m) of 7–8 ridge corduroy. Velveteen was cut the same way but had 32 ridges per inch, so production would be proportionately less. [8]
Cutting was one part of the process. The yarn was sized and the cloth was woven—there would be a high number of weft threads to warp. The ridges were manually cut, and the cloth sent to be finished. It was scoured to remove the size, and brushed to raise the nap. This was then singed over a gas flame, then bleached and or dyed. It was brushed again. It was now stentered to pull it out to the standard width. The cloth was woven at about 31 inches (790 mm) and during processing shrank to 27 inches (690 mm); stentering stabilised the width to 28 inches (710 mm). The back of the cloth would now be filled to give it stiffness: this could be with a glue-based mixture made from boiled bones, although each manufacturer had its own techniques. The cloth was now ready to be taken to the warehouse to be sold. [8]
Fustian was worn by workers during the 19th century. Accordingly, radical elements of the British working class chose to wear fustian jackets as a symbol of their class allegiance. This was especially marked during the Chartist era. The historian Paul Pickering has called the wearing of fustian "a statement of class without words." [9] [ full citation needed ]
Fustian also refers to pompous, inflated or pretentious writing or speech, starting from the time of Shakespeare. This literary use arose because the cloth type was often used as padding, hence, the purposeless words are fustian. Bombast, plant fibre used directly as padding (and not as fabric), has a similar literary meaning. [10]
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain . Porter, Noah, ed. (1913). "Fustian". Webster's Dictionary . Springfield, Massachusetts: C. & G. Merriam Co.Spelman [...] refers to Erasmus' Colloquies for the use of the word fustanum for 'fustian cloth'.
Fustanum, or fustian, was, what it is at this period, a strong cloth made of cotton; and priests, as well as the lower ranks, wore it in vests, tunics, and surtouts.
Calico is a heavy plain-woven textile made from unbleached, and often not fully processed, cotton. It may also contain unseparated husk parts. The fabric is far coarser than muslin, but less coarse and thick than canvas or denim. However, it is still very cheap owing to its unfinished and undyed appearance.
Weaving is a method of textile production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth. Other methods are knitting, crocheting, felting, and braiding or plaiting. The longitudinal threads are called the warp and the lateral threads are the weft, woof, or filling. The method in which these threads are interwoven affects the characteristics of the cloth. Cloth is usually woven on a loom, a device that holds the warp threads in place while filling threads are woven through them. A fabric band that meets this definition of cloth can also be made using other methods, including tablet weaving, back strap loom, or other techniques that can be done without looms.
Velvet is a type of woven fabric with a dense, even pile that gives it a distinctive soft feel. By extension, the word velvety means "smooth like velvet". Historically, velvet was typically made from silk. Today, velvet can be made from silk, linen, cotton, wool, synthetic fibers, silk-cotton blends, or synthetic-natural fiber blends.
Woven fabric is any textile formed by weaving. Woven fabrics are often created on a loom, and made of many threads woven on a warp and a weft. Technically, a woven fabric is any fabric made by interlacing two or more threads at right angles to one another. Woven fabrics can be made of natural fibers, synthetic fibers, or a mixture of both, such as cotton and polyester. Woven fabrics are used for clothing, garments, decorations, furniture, carpets and other uses.
A satin weave is a type of fabric weave that produces a characteristically glossy, smooth or lustrous material, typically with a glossy top surface and a dull back; it is not durable, as it tends to snag. It is one of three fundamental types of textile weaves alongside plain weave and twill weave.
Poplin, also called tabinet, is a fine wool, cotton or silk fabric that has a vertical warp and a horizontal weft. Nowadays, the name refers to a strong material in a plain weave of any fiber or blend, with crosswise ribs that typically give a corded surface.
The spinning jenny is a multi-spindle spinning frame, and was one of the key developments in the industrialisation of textile manufacturing during the early Industrial Revolution. It was invented in 1764-1765 by James Hargreaves in Stan hill, Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire in England.
Corduroy is a textile with a distinctively raised "cord" or wale texture. Modern corduroy is most commonly composed of tufted cords, sometimes exhibiting a channel between them. Both velvet and corduroy derive from fustian fabric. Corduroy looks as if it is made from multiple cords laid parallel to each other.
Double cloth or double weave is a kind of woven textile in which two or more sets of warps and one or more sets of weft or filling yarns are interconnected to form a two-layered cloth. The movement of threads between the layers allows complex patterns and surface textures to be created.
Velveteen is a type of woven fabric with a dense, even, short pile. It has less sheen than velvet because the pile in velveteen is cut from weft threads, while that of velvet is cut from warp threads. Velveteen also has a shorter pile than velvet and is stiffer, with less drape, and is usually made of cotton or a cotton-silk blend.
Pile weave is a form of textile created by weaving. This type of fabric is characterized by a pile—a looped or tufted surface that extends above the initial foundation, or 'ground' weave. The pile is formed by supplemental yarn running in the direction of the length of the fabric or the width of the fabric. Pile weaves include velvet and corduroy fabrics and machine-woven Berber carpets.
Linsey-woolsey is a coarse twill or plain-woven fabric woven with a linen warp and a woollen weft. Similar fabrics woven with a cotton warp and woollen weft in Colonial America were also called linsey-woolsey or wincey. The name derives from a combination of lin and wool. This textile has been known since ancient times. Known as shatnez (שַׁעַטְנֵז) in Hebrew, the wearing of this fabric was forbidden in the Torah and hence Jewish law.
Kasuri (絣) is the Japanese term for fabric that has been woven with fibers dyed specifically to create patterns and images in the fabric, typically referring to fabrics produced within Japan using this technique. It is a form of ikat dyeing, traditionally resulting in patterns characterized by their blurred or brushed appearance.
A selvage or selvedge is a "self-finished" edge of a piece of fabric which keeps it from unraveling and fraying. The term "self-finished" means that the edge does not require additional finishing work, such as hem or bias tape, to prevent fraying.
The manufacture of textiles is one of the oldest of human technologies. To make textiles, the first requirement is a source of fiber from which a yarn can be made, primarily by spinning. The yarn is processed by knitting or weaving, which turns yarn into cloth. The machine used for weaving is the loom. For decoration, the process of colouring yarn or the finished material is dyeing. For more information of the various steps, see textile manufacturing.
Russell cord is a finely corded fabric, generally constructed with a cotton warp and worsted weft (filling). Two or more warp threads are woven together to form the cord, thus the cord lines run warp-wise. Russell cord is visually similar to a very narrow-waled corduroy called pincord, but it is heavier and more sturdy. It is usually woven using 40% cotton and 60% wool. It is mainly used in the making of high quality black academical dress, as well as clerical dress and legal dress in the United Kingdom. It is woven using thicker strands so is heavier than princetta.
A reed is part of a weaving loom, and resembles a comb or a frame with many vertical slits. It is used to separate and space the warp threads, to guide the shuttle's motion across the loom, and to push the weft threads into place. In most floor looms with, the reed is securely held by the beater. Floor looms and mechanized looms both use a beater with a reed, whereas Inkle weaving and tablet weaving do not use reeds.
Mangalagiri Sarees and Fabrics are produced by performing handicraft weaving in Mangalagiri, a town in Guntur district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It was registered as one of the handicraft in the geographical indication from Andhra Pradesh by Geographical Indications of Goods Act, 1999.
Toilinet (Tollanette) was a 19th-century combination fabric of wool and silk or cotton. It had a thick and soft construction. Toilinet was made with wool filling (weft) and a silk or cotton warp. Toilinet and Swansdown were often used for waistcoats.
Delaine was a kind of mixed cloth with cotton warp and wool in the weft. Delaines have many variations such as made of undyed yarns, and also printed or piece dyed. Delaine was a type of cloth used to manufacture women's dresses that was traded in the nineteenth century under many names to suit importers and traders. Moreover, it appeared that the plaintiffs' goods differed from delaines in various other respects.
