the.com/smocking
The needlework so dense it turns fabric into accordion armor for toddlers and royalty alike.
old purposeStretched smock-frocks before elastic existed
hidden mathPleats compress fabric to a third its width
royal flexWorn by English peasants and princes both
name originFrom the loose 'smock' farmworkers wore
modern twistSurvives mostly on christening gowns now