What is steam bending for wood?

You let a piece of wood sit in steam until it is soaked through, take it out and bend it. Usually around a form of some sort where you can clamp it in place until it cools. It will then hold that shape. Usually a steam cabinet is a tube on an upward slant with the top end plugged except for a small vent hole. Boiling water or live steam is let in the bottom, it rises and softens the wood.