There are so many places you can start once you have decided that you want to make a shawl. Today we are going to start with reed size. The reed you choose determines how many ends per inch (epi) the warp has. This in turn determines the density of your final fabric.

I use an ashford rigid heddle and it currently has the widest selection of reed sizes: 2.5, 5. 7.5, 10, 12.5 and 15. To my knowledge it is the only rigid heddle with 2.5 and 15 dent reeds (I could be wrong, please correct me if I am) When paired with a double heddle option the Ashford looms can achieve 2.5, 5. 7.5, 10, 12.5, 15, 20, 25 and 30 epi when doing plain weave, making it possible to use almost any yarn you could want. When you consider the change in epi when threading for twill there are even more options (2 10 dents threaded for rosepath twill produces 12 epi for example).

But what is the best option for you? How do you choose the right reed? We will stick to simple today. There are two primary methods: 1, if you have already bought the yarn and 2, if you have a specific reed size.

1. You already have a beautiful yarn that you want to use. In this case, use the wrap test to determine the epi. There are some nice tools for this, or you can use a pencil or ruler. Wind the yarn around the tool or ruler for 1 inch and count how many wraps then divide the result by 2. The result will give you a rough idea of which reed to use. In my example, there are 18 wraps per inch (wpi), divide that by 2 and I get 9. The closest size reed is 10. Notice that the yarn isn’t pressed tight together or pulled tightly around the ruler.

2. You only have a 7.5 and a 10 dent reed. In this case, the yarn you choose will depend on the reeds you have available to you. Here is a general guideline. We’ll look at other things to consider next in this post.

2.5—super bulky

5—bulky/aran

7.5—aran/worsted/dk

10—sport/heavy fingering/4/8

12.5—fingering/heavy lace

15—lace/2/8

The above methods give you a place to start. Following these guidelines will likely result in a successful plain weave project as well as work for most pick up or finger controlled techniques. But there are other things to consider.

1. Are you using a superwash or non-superwash wool?

A superwash wool is not going to full as much as a non-superwash. So if you do your wrap test and the result is between 2 reed sizes (say 8.5) the wool will determine which reed is best. For superwash choose the 10, for a non superwash the 7.5 might be just fine.

2. What is the fibre?

Bamboo and Tencel—still lots of spaces in the weave

Pure silk, bamboo or tencel for example do not full as much as wool, alpaca, llama or angora. So again, consider how much fulling you can expect from the fibre and choose your reed accordingly.

3. Is the fibre spun worsted or woolen?

Woolen and worsted spun refer to how a wool is spun (not to be confused with worsted weight) Very simply, worsted is smooth and has the air squished out during spinning, while woolen is puffier because the fibres are every which way which holds in lots of air. Woolen will full more than worsted. It will also stick more to its neighbour so a wider sett might be preferable.

4. What is the end result you want?

Again, back to the wrap test. If we get a result of 9, going up to a 10 will give a slightly denser fabric while going down to the 7.5 will give an airier, more drapey fabric. Either can work depending on what you want. If you want placemats you might want a fairly dense material. A sticky yarn, like a mohair blend, will make a lovely stable fabric at a wider sett.

So, there you go, a “few” things to consider when choosing a reed size! Next week we’ll talk about choosing the actual yarn.

Design Your Own Shawl Pt 2--Choosing the Right Reed