Blocking Away

I love blocking. I love that after spending time knitting a piece – large or small – I give it a sudsy bath, lay it out properly and after awhile it smells divine and the stitches are smooth and perfect. There is nothing more pleasing.

I never used to have a fondness for blocking. It was more of a loathing type of feeling. I would avoid blocking like the plague, especially if it was “just a baby hat” or “just a sock”. It wasn’t a lace shawl after all! And then I took a class with Anne Hanson at Sock Camp. She laid out beautiful knit samples (which of course were blocked) and then presented an array of swatches that were beautifully blocked as well. Swatches! I couldn’t believe it. Even if I did swatch for a project, I certainly did not block it. Heck, I would rip out my swatch as soon as I got gauge and knit my project with it. I can hear the gasping now from you knitters that know better. haha

Anne’s class changed my knitting life. I sucked up all the info she spewed in class. It was fascinating! Over the next couple years, Anne and I became friends and I was always learning from her. Whether it was from reading the blog, taking her classes all over the country, or a quick email or phone call here or there. Her mind always fascinates me and with every encounter I learn something.

I have learned a true appreciation for knit stitches and it gets solidified every time I block. I really learn how stitch patterns, fiber, twist, and needles behave together when a knitted piece of fabric is dry.

I was at Anne’s in February when I bound off my Slöfock and thought I’d give it a bath at her house. She has fab old registers that are perfect for drying a dense fabric like a hat. I gave it a bath and when I rolled out the excess water the hat was HUGE! I panicked. I ran to her and said, “I know it’s a slouch hat, but this is ridiculous!” Anne assured me that when that particular fabric is wet it really expands but it will dry beautifully. Apparently I gave her the “yeah right” look and she said “trust me.” She told me to go in every hour and give the hat a good yank in several directions and rotate how it lies on the register.

I did everything she told me. And really, it was seconds of work. The hat came out amazing. It was the first hat I knit that didn’t have major seams on the side or wonky sections that didn’t lay right. It was perfect. It was beautiful. I was proud. And this was all due to the attention of blocking.

With Anne not at the ready every time I block, I find it really handy to pop this in when I need a few tips.

Blocking Knits is great to watch all the way through the first time, but it’s also super handy to reference sections when blocking a handknit. Especially when blocking wires are involved! We keep getting testimonials from knitters loving this DVD! Here are a couple:

KatJ

As soon as I learned Anne Hanson had a blocking video out, I rushed to the website and purchased it.

A few years ago I had the pleasure of taking a blocking class from Anne, and it helped me so much. Up until then blocking was my least favorite thing to do. After the in-person class, I had a bit more confidence, but I still had some questions.

This video on blocking answered all of my questions. Anne goes into a lot of detail, and she is simply a great teacher. I loved that she took all sorts of shapes and showed you how to block them. Hats, socks, different types of shawls – she covers them all. Now I don’t dread blocking. Anne has turned it into a joy!

I have watched the video several times. I love that I can enjoy Anne’s teaching whenever I want to. This is a must have item for my knitting resources.

Mestina

I was so excited when I found out that Anne had done a video on blocking. When I block handknits, usually it’s me quickly threading blocking wires, pinning it, and moving on. Usually not measuring and just kind of winging it, and it seemed to work but my blocking was never as good nor did it seem to “stay” blocked. After having knit a test knit for Anne and having sent it to her for blocking and after the photo shoot and receiving it back, it was amazing! And yet my poor blocking skills continued. So, now I’ve watched the video. There are great tips and tricks for blocking along with the “how to” and “why fors” that make it an invaluable resource for anyone.

Seeing the tips and how to on blocking shawls and sweaters was the most helpful for me especially since the majority of what I knit are lace shawls and I’m currently working on a sweater that will need to be blocked. Anne makes it look easy and her ability to explain why and how is just amazing and makes it so that you can take what she shows in the video and apply it immediately and it makes sense. This video is one that really is invaluable to anyone who needs to block a handknit piece, even those who crochet would benefit from the tips about blocking, from beginning blockers to advanced, it’s always good to learn something new or have a refresher course in something you’ve done for awhile. 

I recently knit a Woodcutter’s Toque, which has a lot of cables. The cables were tight and only looked a bit like the pattern photo when I was done. Did I panic? No. I just knew it would all come out in the wash.

And it did. The cables relaxed, flattened and popped off the knit. Gorgeous, just gorgeous. Perfection in Confection!

Unfortunately, I didn’t take any pre-blocking photos. On Friday, I had the sudden urge to knit a baby hat as a topper for my SIL’s baby shower gift. I stumbled upon Barrel O Monkey, a perfect gift. It was a favorite of Baby Knitspot’s. I happened to have some Wooly Worsted on hand, so a hat was born. I knit it everywhere I went that day

and finished it in the witching hour. And this time I took photos of the process!

After I wove in the ends, it looked like this

Notice how the crown decreases are uneven and kind of jagged while the hat is folded. Also, the hat will not lay flat. Not a very pretty presentation for a gift. Into the water it went! (sorry for the night photography, but this was done at the witching hour!)

Almost instantly the stitches started to relax.

It was if they said, “aaaaah.” I left the hat in the bath for an hour or so, occasionally giving it a swish around.

With just a quick roll in a towel to get the excess water out, it looks amazing.

I let it dry on the register, yanking, flipping and rotating until it was dry.

The next morning I added a Knitterella tag to personalize the gift

and let the recipient know how to care for it.

It was well received by my brother and his wife. Don’t they look so happy to be new parents!?

Over the next couple weeks I know I’ll be blocking holiday gifts like crazy and, thanks to Anne, Blocking Knits will make everything beautiful. I bet a lot of you are in the same boat and we have plenty of DVDs ready to ship. Click here to purchase and we’ll get it right out! This would also make a fantastic stocking stuffer for the knitter in your life. Happy Blocking everyone!

And because I know Cherie is wondering, the song I hum while blocking is Skating Away but I change the lyrics to go with my title Blocking Away.