My very first blocking experience

Well, it's official: Desert Rose is finished! The waist - which I mentioned before - was a bit snug, and has been let out about 2 inches and works perfectly now. The neckline has been finished with a short ribbed pattern to match the sleeves and waistline.

To 100% finish a knitted piece of work, I have taught myself by watching some fantastic videos on YouTube. I learned how to knit in the round (a tube-shaped piece by using either two needles connected by a plastic wire, or using three or more needles with points on both sides), and I have learned how to make multiple other stitches in order to knit just about any lace pattern I could come across. The very last step to knitting anything is often skipped - as I have done on every scarf I ever made. Blocking, which I mentioned here, includes two steps - a light wash, and a stretching dry.

Here, I am washing the sweater in warm water with Vespa's lavender-scented pup shampoo. It's very mild, basically like a baby shampoo, so I figured this should work as well as those expensive soaps made specifically for the blocking process. Look at the water! It turned a funky plum color as I washed the sweater. I was expecting a small amount of color to leak from the yarn, but not this much!




Finally, after gently squeezing as much water from the sweater as I could without wringing (and misshaping) it, I laid an old blanket on the mattress in our guest bedroom to keep the mattress from turning purple or pink and began the backache of stretching and pinning the sweater, all the way around. One pin for every inch. Whew! It seemed to take forever. It stays here until the sweater is completely dry.



Blocking teaches the fibers to cling to each other, wrap around each other, and hold their shape much better than they would otherwise, so I'm happy to do this each time the sweater is washed to ensure a long and happy life. Hopefully Desert Rose will be dry by tomorrow and I will be able to model her for you!