Two of the most important things you can do to have beautiful, professional looking, handmade knits, have nothing to do with the actual knitting of the garment. They are swatching and steaming/blocking. They may not be fun. They may seem like an unnecessary imposition. But they are what kicks knitting up a notch from nice to fabulous.
Remember the Knitting Fever survey that asked people their darkest knitting secrets? (That wasn't really the title but isn't that much more intriguing than a less suggestive wording?) I was shocked, amazed and appalled when many, many people admitted they didn't do a gage swatch. Being a perfectionist, someone who likes things that fit and someone who wants to do right by gorgeous yarn, I always swatch. Knitting Fever has just had a KAL on the Noro Heart afghan which I love and will do one day. I learned a lot from this series, for example, it is better to do the afghan using Intarsia with bobbins than Faire Isle even though you could do either. (Drat those pesky bobbins.) They also talked about blocking. The leader of the KAL did wet blocking (something I'm not particularly comfortable with), but one of the KF women said she seldom blocks unless it is a gift. I can't imagine not blocking. I have a wonderful industrial steamer which does a perfect job. I am going to use some pictures of a scarf I just finished to show why it is so important to block/steam handmade knits. The look goes from homemade/frumpy to WOW that's beautiful and professional. One day I got an email from those wonderful women at Knit Purl in Portland, Oregon. (oh, by the way Linda is visiting them today! I am so envious!) It was for a silk scarf and it looked pretty interesting, so I bought two; one in this beautiful teal which the picture doesn't do justice and a second in purple. That is a bad habit of mine, not buying just one of something but two or several. I decided to start the purple one and put the teal one in my sister Kathy's stocking for Christmas (which I forgot to do.) Something intervened, I think it was the Hazel's Grandma's Stocking Cap in Twisted Fiber Arts Evolution, and this became yet another TBFL (To Be Finished Later.) When we got home from Sunset Beach, I was digging around in my knitting basket and found this beautiful thing and decide to finish it. I needed something to decompress from my Rainbow Cardigan. Something mindless yet beautiful. This fit the bill. This is what the scarf looked like when it was finished, beautiful but scruffy. Then I got out the steamer and it became this. . . Isn't is scrumptious!?!?! It looks beautiful, professional and finished. It is something you could buy at a high-end boutique. Just spending a little time makes so much difference. I must admit that I have only been brave enough to wet block once. This is the TBFL I had to finish before I started the Twisted Fiber Arts scarf in the last post. It also was a great project to relax with after the knitting indecision in Sunset Beach. It was nice to just knit on the right side, purl on the wrong side and create the angle with the increase and decrease at the sides. Sometimes easy is not boring, it is soothing.
Two of the most important things you can do to have beautiful, professional looking, handmade knits, have nothing to do with the actual knitting of the garment. They are swatching and steaming/blocking. They may not be fun. They may seem like an unnecessary imposition. But they are what kicks knitting up a notch from nice to fabulous.
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jan parsonThis blog is dedicated to Mary Helen Growt my first knitting teacher and the woman who changed my life. The mission of Knitting: A Love Story is to preserve, share and promote the love of knitting. Archives
April 2021
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