A Blocking Tutorial.

This week, we’ve decided to share a little tutorial. How do you make that finished object look as good as the picture on the pattern.  The secret is blocking.  Take that pile of yarn and make it beautiful.

 

It all starts with some cold water and a little Soak (or some other gentle wash).

Soak in the sink.

Next just put the thing in the water.  No swishing necessary, but if it makes you feel better, go for it.  Just keep it mellow.

Get it wet.
Get it wet.

While your FO is soaking in the sink you can prep the flat surface.  If you don’t have pets, the floor is safe.  Foam mats work, but I find the spare bed is good.  I don’t mind putting pins in my mattress.

A place to lay it out.
A place to lay it out.

Check on it.  It’s almost all wet.  It’s been about 20 minutes just calmly soaking up the water.

Almost wet.
Almost wet.

Once it’s good and wet, you can take it out and GENTLY squeeze the excess water out.  Do not wring it, you’ll make it sad.

Laying out on the towel.
Laying out on the towel.

Put it on a towel or two.

Another towel.
Another towel.

And roll it up.

 

Rolled up snug.
Rolled up snug.

Stand on the towel.  I suggest taking off your socks.  The towels will absorb a good deal of the moisture.

A little squeeze.
A little squeeze.

Next up, stretching and pinning.

Now for the fun.
Now for the fun.

Here is where you refer to the measurements.  If the numbers are critical, you measure and pin to the proper dimensions.  Sometimes you can stretch it a bit, but don’t overdo.  Your purpose here is to smooth and shape, not stretch.

Check your measurements.
Check your measurements.

You don’t always have to pin a project.  Lace often needs to be pinned since you may have points to accentuate.  Some items just need to be smoothed out and allowed to dry.  Blocking wires are very handy for shawls and such.

A pin here, a pin there.
A pin here, a pin there.

Let it dry completely and you’re done.

All done and ready for baby.
All done and ready for baby.

There you have it.  I you have any questions, we’re happy to help.  Stop in and ask.

 

May 3 we are having a class…

Reading your Knitting… Join us to learn how to discern mistakes in your knitting and of course to fix them.

 

Finished Objects

IMG_8513-151545082310AD49E6 IMG_7266

A Quick Update

Things are progressing nicely here with our new Point of Sale system.  We continue to learn as we go, but we can now use it for sales.  So now we plan to get back to our regular blog update schedule.

 

photo
A Pretty Little Girl In A Pretty Little Dress

 

Some stuff you need to know…

Finishing deadlines.

Puffy ornaments, designer pillows, kissing balls, large stand-ups, vases, card boxes, purses (not including Julie Pishke Bags).

Halloween…July 31

Thanksgiving…August 27

Christmas…September 3

Stockings and non-designer pillows…September 20

Small ornaments & stand-ups… October 23

 

Upcoming Class

May 3 — Reading Your Knitting

Do you know how to tell if the stitch you are looking at is a knit stitch or a purl stitch?  What about a k2tog versus an SSK?  How do you tell why you ran out of stitches before finishing a part of your pattern?  And what if you need to tink (that’s knit spelled backwards) a row to fix a mistake?  We will cover techniques that will give you tools to fix mistakes in your knitting.

 

 

Finished Objects

 

 

It’s Been Awhile

Things have been busy here lately.  We have undertaken the gargantuan task of setting up a Point of Sale system.  That means counting all the inventory and inputting the data into the program, which of course we are learning at the same time.  So as you can imagine, it is taking some time to accomplish.  There is a light glimmering at the end of the tunnel, but it has interrupted the regular flow of things.  We are back this week with a few things to remind you about and a few new things to show you.

 

Classes.

Recently we have had a sock class, and a counted thread class.  Coming up we have this Saturday is Setting Up A Project in Knit Companion.  If you are a knitter with an iPad, you need knitCompanion.  Some have shied away from the app thinking it is complicated, but it is well worth the time to learn how to use it and we will help you get started.

Coming up in the next few weeks we have…

April 12 — Hair & Fur Needlepoint Sampler

Learn stitches you can use to do hair and fur on your needlepoint projects.

May 3 — Reading Your Knitting

Do you know how to tell if the stitch you are looking at is a knit stitch or a purl stitch?  What about a k2tog versus an SSK?  How do you tell why you ran out of stitches before finishing a part of your pattern?  And what if you need to tink (that’s knit spelled backwards) a row to fix a mistake?  We will cover techniques that will give you tools to fix mistakes in your knitting.  We will knit a washcloth, so you will learn a lot and end up with something useful.

 

Finished Objects