Tuffet, pouffe or hassock are all terms for a piece of furniture used as a footstool or low seat. It is distinguished from a stool by being completely covered in fabric so that no legs are visible. It's essentially a large hard cushion that may have an internal wooden frame to give it more rigidity. Wooden feet may be added to the base to give it stability. If the piece is larger, so that storage can take place inside it, then it is generally known as an ottoman.

Hassock has special association with churches, as it is used to describe the thick cushions employed by the congregation to kneel on while in prayer.

The names tuffet and hassock are both derived from English names for a small grassy hillock or clump of grass, in use since at least the sixteenth century. Pouffe is a nineteenth century French import for "something puffed out". A tuffet is also an English unit of capacity, equal to 2 pecks, or half a bushel.

Another connotation of the word tuffet is the description of an inflatable landing area for precision accuracy parachute landings.

See also

• Little Miss Muffet

References

• Tuffet construction details at HGTV. Also
• Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898 E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897.
• EtymologyOnLine
• [www.hassock.org Hassock] Gallery

Further reading

• Michael Immerwahr Technical Design Solutions for Theatre: the technical brief collection. Focal Press. ISBN 0240804929. — a proposed design for a four-wheel tuffet, to replace the three-wheeled design used by the Yale School of Drama