Since my retirement in 2008 much of my leisure time is spent in the garden from March to October. The few short months in between give me ample time to work on sewing and knitting projects. This winter I just haven't been sewing though. Instead I seem to be knitting up a storm! Seriously difficult projects don't seem to bother me at all since I signed up for a weekly session with the 'Knit Dr.' Kelly Jensen, previous co-owner of Your Local Yarn Shop meets with groups three times a week helping with whatever stumbling block we've come up against. I would be there right now if it weren't for this dad blasted cold weather they refer to as the 'polar vortex'. One thing that Kelly has taught me is to not be intimidated by instructions! Don't read ahead and decide 'oh, I can't do that'. I've also found that the internet, with the help of YouTube videos, can be another amazing source of information and help.
Today, I'm going to show you my recently completed shawl. The pattern is Sister Shawls designed by Rebecca Velasquez. In keeping with my ONLY New Year's resolution which was to CHALLENGE myself regularly, I not only knit this beautiful shawl (which was not necessarily a challenge), but I blocked it too! That part I'm quite proud of!
If you don't think you can block your own knitted projects, you are so wrong! Recently I checked prices online for a blocking kit, and found the best deal through Overstock.com. They had a Knit & Lace Blocking Wires Kit for a great price, and shipping was reasonable! This was the same kit I saw on other knitting sites for much, much more. Once my wires were ordered I addressed the problem of where I was going to lay out my blocking. The carpeted floor in the downstairs bedroom was an option. But backbreaking. Then I had a monumental thought. For Christmas, my daughter had given my husband 12 anti-fatigue interlocking foam mats. My next step was to confiscate what I needed. Of course table space is never a problem in my craft room as I have 4-8 ft. tables that I use for my stamping classes, and they are always set up.
The blocking kit arrived quickly and included lots of wires, T-pins and even a yardstick, which was nice to use to make a straight edge while blocking. I was quite pleased that all this came in a tidy tube for storage. Since my shawl was completed and ready to block I popped 3 of the interlocking foam mats out of their package and laid them down on one of my eight foot tables. That was easy. I soaked my shawl in cool water for probably 2 hours before squeezing out most of the water and then laying it out on the mats. Maybe I just got lucky, but this process was a breeze. Carefully stretching out those beautiful fibers, running the wires along the stitches on the straight side, and pinning the points in place, the process probably didn't take me more than a few minutes. As the shawl began to dry I did reposition some of the pins. Here is a picture of the shawl laid out and pinned to the mats. I did run out of T-pins, so I'll have to pick up more of those, but my sewing pins worked just as well.
Isn't this yarn beautiful! It's Cherry Tree Hill Supersock. 100% super wash merino, fingering weight, 420 yards per hank. I have quite a sock yarn stash, and there are so many awesome patterns out there for shawls and other projects using sock yarn.
Once my project was dry ( approx. 24 hours), I removed the pins and the points stayed perfectly in place.
I was very pleased with the results and knew I had to share my DIY blocking experience with my readers!
Thanks for stopping by today!
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