How to Alternate Two Pickup-Stick Patterns on a Rigid Heddle Loom

Sometimes they can. Little Looms explains that a second stick goes behind the rigid heddle and in front of the first stick. Some patterns permit both to remain, but usually the second must come out before the first resumes working. Follow explicit instructions for your particular pattern rather than assuming every two-stick arrangement behaves alike. Little Looms’ pickup-stick basics describes this distinction.

If your pattern requires removing B whenever you return to A, simply labeling two sticks will not preserve both selections in working position. A string-heddle rod provides another way to retain B: yarn loops surround its selected warp ends and connect them to a rod that you lift. Liz Gipson documents this arrangement for patterns whose two sticks interfere. Yarnworker’s heddle-rod explanation shows one selection on a stick and another on a rod.

Use this decision rule: retain two sticks when the pattern explicitly supports that arrangement; otherwise, investigate a stick-and-rod setup with the appropriate shed sequence before weaving a long section.

Two common pickup actions produce different sheds. With the rigid heddle up, bringing a flat pickup stick forward creates warp floats on the face toward the weaver. With the heddle neutral, turning the stick on edge creates weft floats on that face. Ordinary plain-weave picks use the up and down positions with the stick parked at the back. Little Looms’ reader’s guide explains these positions.

That distinction matters when saving two alternating selections. In her honeycomb example, Gipson found that adding string heddles to a warp-float arrangement interfered with the other pattern shed. She reworked the sequence to weave with the opposite face upward. Do not assume that substituting a rod for B leaves every heddle instruction unchanged. Yarnworker’s discussion of float orientation explains the reason.

For the method below, A works with the heddle neutral and its stick on edge; B works with the heddle neutral and its rod lifted. Keep your pattern’s thread selections distinct from its weaving sequence: saving the correct threads is one job, and activating them in the correct shed is another.

Start with a threaded, tensioned warp on which you can already weave plain weave. Have two pickup sticks available for setup, plus a rod, smooth yarn for loops, and removable tape. The second stick temporarily holds B while you transfer that selection to string heddles.

Write each selection separately before picking up threads. Record the counting direction, starting edge, repeat, and any edge exceptions. Treat this as a small working record: “A” and “B” should identify particular warp ends, rather than whichever tool happens to be nearest the heddle.

For conventional slot-thread pickup, lower the rigid heddle and select only the slot ends behind it. The lowered position moves the hole ends down, making the slot ends available for selection. TabbyandTweed’s illustrated tutorial demonstrates this setup and explains why the hole ends are excluded. TabbyandTweed’s pickup instructions provide a visual reference.

Insert A according to your pattern and park it toward the back beam. Insert B in front of A according to its separate selection. Before adding loops, compare both with your written record. Correct a selection error now, while its temporary stick still makes the chosen set easy to inspect.

Make equal-sized yarn loops using a spare rigid heddle as a template. For each selected B warp end, pass a loop underneath that end and place both ends of the loop over the rod. Repeat across the selection. The loop encircles the warp end; the warp itself does not go over the rod. Yarnworker’s heddle-rod instructions explain this construction.

Keep the temporary B stick in place while checking which ends receive loops. Once every B end is represented, secure the loops along the rod with removable tape and remove the temporary stick. Gist’s illustrated setup uses B turned on edge during this transfer. Gist Yarn’s setup instructions show the arrangement.

Loop length must allow the other shed to operate. Jane Patrick specifically notes that string heddles need enough length to avoid interfering with the shed formed by A; she also secures them with tape to keep the rod from sliding out. Schacht’s original heddle-rod example establishes these practical requirements. Its two-heddle twill sequence is a separate structure, so use that page for the construction principle rather than borrowing its weaving order.

For an established neutral-heddle float pattern, activate only the selection called for on that pick. Use this working checklist, derived from the shed positions described above:

Required shed	Rigid heddle	A stick	B rod
Plain weave up	Up	Flat, parked back	Released
Plain weave down	Down	Flat, parked back	Released
A pattern shed	Neutral	Turned on edge	Released
B pattern shed	Neutral	Flat, parked back	Lifted

Gist supplies this complete 12-pick converted repeat for its two-selection example. Use it with that example’s A and B selections, or as a comparison when following a compatible pattern; it is not a universal repeat for arbitrary pickup sets. Gist Yarn’s converted weaving sequence:

1. Heddle up.
2. Neutral; A on edge.
3. Up.
4. Neutral; A on edge.
5. Up.
6. Down.
7. Up.
8. Neutral; lift B rod, with A parked back.
9. Up.
10. Neutral; lift B rod, with A parked back.
11. Up.
12. Down.

Each numbered line is one weft pass. Release the active pattern tool before making the next shed. Mark your completed pick on the working record so that returning to the loom does not depend on remembering whether the last pattern pick used A or B.

Before committing to a long repeat, use the following diagnostic sequence. This is a practical check derived from the documented setup requirements, rather than a separate weave structure.

• Check A alone: put the heddle in neutral, leave B released, and turn A on edge. Compare the raised ends with the recorded A selection.
• Check B alone: flatten and park A, then lift B with the heddle neutral. Compare the raised ends with the B record.
• Check plain weave: release B, park A, and inspect both ordinary sheds.
• Repeat the cycle: return to A, then B, without reinserting either selection.

If B raises an unintended end, inspect which thread its loop surrounds. If A is restrained when B is released, inspect loop length and whether the loops were attached to the intended ends. These checks follow Schacht’s requirements for selecting individual ends and allowing the other shed to operate. Schacht’s construction notes support that diagnosis.

If the selections are correct but the cloth shows floats on the unexpected face, check whether you are following the neutral-heddle conversion or the original up-heddle instructions. Gist’s converted example places the original warp-float face underneath. Gist Yarn’s float-conversion explanation describes that result.

Check the first complete A–B repeat against your instructions before continuing. Look for the intended change in selected ends, the required intervening plain-weave picks, and consistent treatment of the edges. A correct pickup selection does not by itself confirm that every weft pass followed the intended route.

Inspect the outermost warp ends on pattern picks. Depending on the selection and shuttle direction, a pattern shed may leave an edge end uncaught. TabbyandTweed demonstrates adjusting the shuttle’s route around that end in its sample. Follow your own pattern’s edge instructions and inspect both entry and exit sides. TabbyandTweed’s selvedge discussion illustrates the issue.

Once A, B, and both plain-weave sheds reproduce correctly, continue from the recorded repeat. Keep A parked whenever B works, release the rod between its pattern picks, and retain your selection record alongside the weaving order. You now have a repeatable way to alternate the two saved sets without rebuilding either one between sheds.

• How To Use String Heddles & Heddle Rods On Your Rigid Heddle Loom — Gist Yarn
• Reader’s Guide and Heddle Conversion Charts — Little Looms
• Geeking Out: The Heddle Rod — Yarnworker
• Pick-Up, When to Weave Which Float — Yarnworker
• Twill on the Rigid Heddle Loom — Schacht Spindle Company
• Using a pick up stick to create different textured weaving patterns on a rigid heddle loom — TabbyandTweed