velvet
1. A fabric produced in a wide range of
construction and weights from silk, rayon, cotton,
nylon, or wool. Velvet is characterized by a
short, soft. dense pile produced either by weaving
an extra warp into a single cloth, which is looped
over wires and later cut, or by weaving a double
cloth with an extra warp connecting the two
fabrics which are later separated by cutting.
Uncut velvet, or terry, is sometimes woven
simultaneously with the cut to create figures on
the cloth. Velvet brocades, which are the most
luxurious of all velvets, are made with gold and
silver threads as an extra weft, or filling, the
figures being wrought by hand, as with embroidery.
Velveteen and plush are cotton or wool fabrics
woven in much the same manner as true velvet.
Book covers of velvet, often studded with jewels,
were produced, (for royalty) as early as the
middle ages; however, velvet attained to its
greatest use in bookbinding in EMBROIDERED BINDINGS .
As velvet is difficult to work. embroidered velvet
bindings usually included a large area of
applique, laid. or couched work in colored silk or
satin, always with large spaces that were
unworked. Such work as actually was done on the
velvet was always in thick gimp or gold cord. 2. A
leather finished with a fine nap on the grain
side, in contrast toSUEDE , which has a
(usually coarser) nap on the flesh side. (111 , 280 )
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