Pill (textile)

[1][2] Pilling is a surface defect of textiles caused by wear, and is generally considered an undesirable trait.

The textile industry divides pilling into four stages: fuzz formation, entanglement, growth, and wear-off.

[4] Pilling normally happens on the parts of clothing that receive the most abrasion in day-to-day wear, such as the collar, cuffs, and around the thighs and rear on trousers.

Polymeric coatings are sometimes applied to bind fibers into the fabric surface and prevent initial fuzz from forming.

Polyester and cotton fibers are sometimes modified to be of lower-than-normal strength, which results in pills detaching easily from fabrics, once they are formed.