When cloth has been woven it is known as a 'web'. Its appearance is rough and then has to be 'finished'. There are many processes involved in transforming the web into a luxurious finished product, many of which have remained unchanged for hundreds of years.

Scouring removes the oil, grease and dirt while 'milling' shrinks and thickens the fabric.  Now carried out by machine, this was originally achieved by stamping on the fabric in water, thus the old Scottish term 'waulking'.

After wet finishing the fabric is held out to a given width and then dried by passing it over heated rollers in a tentering machine. In the 19th century and earlier, before these machines were available, fabric was hung up on hooks in the open air, giving rise to the expression 'to be on tenterhooks'. Depending on the end use of the fabric, further finishing processes are carried out, such as cropping, raising, and pressing before the final inspection.

There is a special raising process only carried out on cashmere. The dried heads of the teasel plant are placed between metal bars, which are fixed round a large revolving drum. When the teasel heads are wet, they become flexible and the hooked ends gently tease out and align the cashmere fibres to produce the characteristic ripple finish. Man can fly to the moon, but can't find a replacement for the humble teasel.

Scarves, wraps and blankets are cut, folded and stored, ready to be distributed to customers world-wide.

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