Sett Size

[Jack Of All]

I'm a member of a committee that has designed a couple of new tartans for our running club, the Hash House Harriers. Registration is behind us and we are at the point of getting samples woven so that we can send them off to a mass producer of kilts and be less surprised by what comes back.

Part of this step is deciding how big our sett size should be. I would love your opinions. Here are the factors:
• We want box pleats but don't want to be locked into always doing box pleats.
• The tartans are based on that of the 93rd regiment. That sett is quite large, 14 1/2". It would be nice to stay true to that, but not necessary. Stripes on that tartan are 2 1/4"
• Our whole thread count is 388 and can be factored to 97, 194, or 291. It could similarly be multiplied in smaller increments than whole numbers and remain proportional.

I know that for box pleats you want a 6-9" sett size, but does the fact that our sett is so complex play a factor, namely in trying to pleat to the stripe? With a sett size of 9" our stripes would be about 1 1/3"

Both tartans have the same thread count with different colors:



Thanks!

[The Wizard of BC]

With a Sett this large one thing which would be interesting to try is pleating to alternating stripes.

ie; one yellow stripe with white bands, one yellow stripe with red bands.

I think that would look stunning.

[ardchoille]

With a Sett this large one thing which would be interesting to try is pleating to alternating stripes.

ie; one yellow stripe with white bands, one yellow stripe with red bands.

I think that would look stunning.

That's a very interesting idea, I bet that would look good.

[Jack Of All]

Well, here are some pleating possibilities I tried out digitally. I added the ones that mix the stripes as suggested. Will any of these not work? i.e. not enough pleat depth? Too much hidden?



[img]http://api.ning.com/files/q3kOzP7LEzTH07W8pID-OwFJ3bGurkcs5U0v2wvP*ibhwvFHD4lfCjfwspg4LbsSofbWbp yN7wSResr0DDkxteRKVCJZtNIY/PleatingComparisonHuntingsm.jpg[/img]

[The Wizard of BC]

Jack, are you getting copies of the information I have given Patrick?

I does not seem so. These are all wrong for your Sett Size.

[Jack Of All]

Jack, are you getting copies of the information I have given Patrick?

I does not seem so. These are all wrong for your Sett Size.

I saw an email explaining how big the sett could be with different thread weights at 100% and 150%. I don't see any reason why the tartans couldn't be expressed at 200%...

I also don't understand how sett size limits the pleating options. Is there a certain standard size of reveal and pleat depth that should be adhered to? Is there a golden ratio of reveal to hidden? I guess that is the pith of my question.

[Ryan Ross]

Those pleating possibilities look great, but not being a kilt maker, I couldn't offer any insight into their feasibility.

I will say though, that I would keep the sett large, and go with pleating to alternating pivots. I have an 8 yard kilt in what I call the "Ross Hunting 2.0" tartan, which has an extremely large sett (about 8 inches to the HALF repeat). It is pleated to alternating pivots, and looks great. The same can be done with a 4 yard box pleated kilt, so either way, you'd likely be fine (so far as a non-kiltmaker can tell).

[RedBeard]

I like "To Green" and "To trail"

[ChattanCat]

As a kilter/weaver, here is what I can add.
Weaving a tartan uses 18/3 thread. The weight per yard is determined by how many threads/inch you are using.

One way to increase/decrease the sett is to reduce the number of threads for each color. If you take the thinnest element, say it is 4 threads wide. You can reduce this by 1, or two threads. You don't want to go down to just one thread, it is a twill... and two threads are needed to see the element.

The rest of the elements will be reduced by the same percentage of threads, if you have an element with 12 threads, and you have reduced the smallest tartan element in half, then you must reduce the 12 thread element to 6.

Hope this helps,
CC

[Jack Of All]

The decision time for sett size in fast approaching. The options are 6" and 9" (we are seeing if 7 1/2" is a technical possibility). As the reveal of the pleat is necessarily 1/3 the sett, that means reveals of 2" or 3".

What is your educated opinion on set size aesthetics? Which would look better?