Sett Size

[M. A. C. Newsome]

Here's a pic from Tuefel's recent wedding thread.


The groom and his brother are both wearing ancient MacDonald of the Isles Hunting. But notice the difference in the sett size.

I, personally, think the larger sett size looks better. But this is obviously a personal preference.

Which brings me to the reason for this post. We spend a lot of time when we select a tartan for our kilt debating on whether we want the modern, ancient, muted, weathered color schemes, etc. But do any of us give much thought as to what sett size we would prefer? When we are shopping around, comparing samples from different mills, does the size of the sett affect our decision?

In a few older pattern books I have seen it would sometimes happen that a mill would produce the same tartan in two, sometimes three different sett sizes. If mills were to do this today, would you, as a consumer, appreciate having the option?

I suppose I am just curious as to how much this is even a factor people consider when purchasing their kilt (or tartan cloth).

[KWD]

Matt, This is a GREAT topic!

for me being relatively new to Kilts (only the past 8 years and only having a Tartan Kilt for the past couple years or so) I was not aware of differing Set sizes. Recently, Joshua received his Davidson Modern Kilt from Rockey which is a beautiful Tartan


And I have my Davidson Modern as well


As you can see both very different set sizes, but both very attractive Tartans, I think I like the idea of being able to choose your set size, In my opinion it gives you even more opportunity to stand out in a crowd.

I happen to love my set with is at least twice the size of Joshua's however I would still LOVE to have a Kilt in a smaller set like Joshua's as well, being a smaller set I think there is more splash of color and contrast, then mine..

[M. A. C. Newsome]

Kyle,

Once again, your photos prove to me that I do prefer larger sett sizes in general (at least for kilting purposes). I think your kilt looks very handsome!

But I do recognize that there would be plenty of instances where a smaller sett size would be more beneficial. And also that my personal preference for larger setts in a kilt is just that -- my personal preference.

Does anyone prefer a smaller sett size in a kilt?

[KD Burke]

Matt,

I share your preference for larger setts. To my eye a smaller sett appears "busy" and carries unfortunate connotations of used car salesmen wearing white shoes.

I'm told that small setts frequently present pleating challenges.

[KWD]

Matt, Another advantage to a small set that I can see would be Pleating, I will have to get a Pleat shot of my Kilt for you, I really like the look of Lots of pleats, my pleats are very deep due to the Set size (so i am told) were having a smaller set would allow for more shallower pleats in turn causing more pleats!

I think anyway I am no expert and I think I would sew my finger to my kilt if i tried to make one...

[CDNSushi]

Wow, you learn something new every day. Now at the risk of exposing my ignorance, could someone explain HOW it's possible that a tartan might have more than one sett size? I was under the impression that sett size was determined by thread count... And if you alter the thread count, are you not then changing the name/design of the tartan itself? Or is it simply just a matter of doubling or halving the thread count to obtain the larger or smaller sett size?

[Paul Henry]

Wow, you learn something new every day. Now at the risk of exposing my ignorance, could someone explain HOW it's possible that a tartan might have more than one sett size? I was under the impression that sett size was determined by thread count... And if you alter the thread count, are you not then changing the name/design of the tartan itself? Or is it simply just a matter of doubling or halving the thread count to obtain the larger or smaller sett size?

The thread count is a fixed formula, but there is no reason why it can't be doubled/trebled etc , as long as the actual propotions remain the same.
A client wanted a kilt done in St Kilda which is a small red/ black sett, I got D Dalgleish to enlarge the sett so that red lines were about 1 cm wide, it looked great when it was finished, not at all like a table cloth!

[M. A. C. Newsome]

*** what Paul said. The threadcount of the tartan is not hard and fast. It is meant to give an idea of proportions. So long as the proportions of the pattern remain visibly about the same, you can modify the thread count as needed.

To give a very, very simple example, the thread count of the Red & Black MacGregor tartan (aka Rob Roy) is often given as K=R. This means that the black threads equal the red threads. Now it doesn't matter if you weave it at K20 R20 or K40 R40 or K102 R102, visually the tartan pattern would be the same, just on different scales.

[seanachie]

I own a PV kilt in Isle of Skye and I have noticed significant differences in sett size between mine and the various posted pics of 16 oz. wool posted by other members. I do agree that it does make a notable difference based on the size of the sett. In IoS I do like the larger sett size.

Also, Paul Henry's post reminds me of traits of a good kilt maker. Clearly Paul had the foresight to see the visual issue with the standard set and had Dalgleish make alterations in the weave. I have been largely lucky in that kiltmakers I have chosen have raised issues in discussion that I might have thought of, and clearly sett size is one that makes a difference.

[Spc. Scott]

I was going to mention Isle of Skye as well. I really like the look of the tartan but prefer the look of it in wool rather than the PV. I seem to remember reading that a lot of this is due to the size difference in yarns?

I guess my question is this: Is the yarn size that different between PV and 16oz wool or does a lot of the sett size difference due to changing the thread count?