Sunday, March 27, 2011

Blocking. Did I Do It Right?

I am not sure. I think I did. I didn't ruin my shawl, so maybe I did :)

When I finished the shawl back in November, I didn't have a chance to block it before needing it. I also didn't know how to. After stumbling across a thread on Ravelry about how blocking can make your lace items truly stunning (and my luck is that I can't find that thread again), I decided to give it a go.

Here it is just on the floor before.



And on me before.


I soaked it for 15 minutes, rolled in a towel and laid it out flat on a blanket on the lounge room floor (one of the few benefits of having not got rid of the ugly carpet just yet - I can stick pins in it!)
There is a pin in each of the edging loops, down the middle line, and across the top sort of evenly. I tried to get it symmetrical, and left it overnight to dry.


I am not sure it made a huge amount of difference, but it is slightly bigger - both width and depth. It also feels softer and well, at least it has had a wash :)



So if you can point me to any great pages on blocking feel free to leave a comment.

Cheers!

4 comments:

Heather said...

I'm not a knitter, so I couldn't even begin to help, but it's a lovely shawl! :)

Frances said...

Looks like you got it about right, Liz; it's not really all that difficult. I don't even bother to block the baby blankets I make. I do block the smaller and finer pieces I make with cotton thread, because they need it to stay in shape (especially important when working on a bedspread made of squares;)). It's probably also a good idea to block clothing. Here's a quick overview I found of the various methods: http://www.michaels.com/Blocking-a-Crocheted-Piece/ae0079,default,pg.html. Just apply some of your abundant crating common sense and you'll be fine. Cheers!

Frances said...

Oops! craFting common sense. Too much coffee this morning!

Liz said...

Thanks Heather - I really love it.

Thanks for the link Fran :)