A method of making a fabric-creped absorbent cellulosic sheet is provided which includes dewatering a papermaking furnish and partially drying the web without wet-pressing before applying it to a translating transfer surface moving at a first speed. The process further includes fabric-creping the web from the transfer surface at a consistency of from about 30 to about 60 percent utilizing a creping fabric, the creping step occurring under pressure in a creping nip defined between the transfer surface and the creping fabric wherein the fabric is traveling at a second speed slower than the speed of said transfer surface, the fabric pattern, nip parameters, velocity delta and web consistency being selected such that the web is creped from the surface and redistributed on the creping fabric. After creping, the web is dried, preferably with a plurality of can dryers to a consistency of at least about 90 percent while it is held in the creping fabric.