This section is from the book "The Home Cyclopedia Of General Information", by Charles Morris. Also available from Amazon: Home Cyclopedia of Necessary Knowledge.
[Ital. velluto.] A pile formed of silk, or a mixture of silk and cotton, by short pieces of thread crowded together, or woven with a third set of threads so closely that they stand up and hide the warp and woof. The rows of loops are slit with a sharp knife. Cotton velvet is an imitation velvet made of cotton, and sometimes called velveteen.
 
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