Reed Marks

 

tiny black ^ shows an obvious reed mark

I get asked by newer weavers how to get rid of reed marks.  

I don't actually worry about them over much.  Remember that we don't judge our textiles while they are on the loom, but after wet finishing.

Here is the warp I'm currently weaving.  There are some areas where the reed marks are really obvious.  The thing is, when I talk about threads moving to areas of least resistance?  This kind of gap is what I'm talking about.  Once the warp has been cut off the loom and tension removed from the threads?  The ones next to a gap are going to tend to roll into those gaps.  Even *before* the web goes into the water.

So once wet finished, the cloth is going to have reduced the size of the reed marks by shifting into those gaps and either be gone entirely, or greatly reduced.

Whatever is left I don't worry about.  They are the mark of the loom.   (Well, the reed to be precise, but you get my drift!)

Likewise I don't fret too much about floats at the selvedge.  So long as the float doesn't interfere with the function of the cloth, I pretty much ignore them.  These towels have 5 end floats.  And they will be fine after wet finishing, which will include a hard press.

But if someone truly wants to eliminate all reed marks, a finer reed can be used.  For this warp I have 4 ends per dent.  A higher density will disguise reed marks, but these are meant to be tea towels and I don't want them really dense - I want them to get into tiny corners and be able to dry the dishes.

Plus the denser the cloth, the more it will resist absorbing water.

So - understand what will happen when something changes and work to create the quality of textile you want to have when you are done.  Yes, including the wet finishing.  Reserve judgement until it's done, done.

Reed Marks

Reed marks - before and after

On one of the lists I belong to a newbie asked about the wisdom of putting more than one end per dent in a reed. She was concerned about the marks left by the reed.

The above photo shows a before and after shot of towels that I've been making. The peach towel is loom state, the purple is finished. The set is 32 epi and I've sleyed four ends in an 8 dent reed. The reed marks are very clear in the peach.

During wet finishing threads will slide to areas of least resistance. They will generally fill in small gaps such as those left by the reed and if not disappear completely, will be significantly reduced.

In these towels the linen weft is not so inclined to move as much as a cotton weft would, so while the reed marks are not entirely gone, they are greatly reduced. Click on the photo for a closeup.

Remember - it's not finished until it's wet finished!