Sweater Blocking

I am posting these photos because they might be useful to someone else. I knit my first sweater when I was 12 years old and can't remember much about it except the colour and that our Labrador retreiver pup chewed a corner of it while we were out. He jumped up and grabbed it from on top of the washing machine. I don't recall if I even got to wear it before he destroyed it. No wonder I didn't knit again for quite a few years. Then I recall knitting another sweater when I was 18 years old, a gift for a girl who gave me a drive to school every day. She was thrilled and I am still amazed that it actually fit her and looked good. It was an Aran pullover with a turtleneck and I recall she wore it with suede mini skirts which were all the rage then. (not that I wore them!)

Despite the fact that I did quite a bit of knitting, I knew nothing about the process of blocking. My mother, who was a prolific knitter, never blocked anything. I remember her pressing pieces before sewing them together and her sweaters were always beautiful. She only knit with acrylic yarn however, and I think she missed out on the beauty of real wool yarn.

Thank goodness for the internet, because knitting magazines are sorely lacking on how to block your knitted pieces before sewing them together. 

The last few sweaters I have knit, I have pinned in place onto a styrofoam board which I covered with 1/4" gingham. I figured that the gingham would help me to line things up and it works very well for this. You still require a tape measure to get the finished dimensions correct, but then you can just use the squares to pin everything where it should be. After pinning the pieces to the board, I then misted them thoroughly with a plant mister until they were damp all over and then I left them to dry. This took several days.

But another visit to the internet and an alternate method was discovered on YouTube. Soak the sweater pieces in the sink in cool water, squeeze out the water, roll the piece up in a towel and squeeze out the excess water. Using wool, this works beautifully - the piece will be damp but not soaking and then you simply pin it in place to the measurements given in the pattern for the size you knit. And wait for it to dry. This latest sweater has taken about one day to dry. 

The back and one front pinned to dry

I began by pinning the back and one front because that was all that would fit on the board. Then when the back was dry, I removed it and pinned the other front piece. So easy to get it to match the other front as they are side by side. Once these are dry, I will do the same with the two sleeves. Then it will be ready to sew together and all that is left to do is pick up stitches around the neckline and work some ribbing there.

This sweater is far from perfect; some mistakes I undid and corrected; others I just let them go, thinking that if anyone is close enough to see the mistakes, they will have to be someone I know very well. And they will also have to be a knitter. The chances of both of those happening are extremely slim.

The front pieces side by side, the one on the right is already dry, the one on the left has just been pinned to the board and will be dry by tomorrow.

The essential tools for blocking: your pattern with the finished measurements (stretch the sweater out to measure to those numbers), tape measure and pins.

And yes, so original, I made the sweater in the same colour as the one in the pattern book. The yarn I used was Cascade 220, 100% wool, I love this yarn and it knits easily without splitting and shows stitch definition well. I have already cast on another Aran pattern, I really love cables.

Knitting, Not Sewing

I haven't posted here in ages, for two reasons. One, no sewing going on, due to illness and my "mojo" has vanished. Second, I have developed a fondness for knitting.

First it was the flu, then came viral bronchitis, which is still plaguing me. This saps all energy; this morning after raking leaves, I was done in and had to take a nap. And I am not someone who takes naps.

Hopefully this bug will be gone soon, although the doctor said her patients are complaining of 6-8 weeks to get rid of this thing. Much coughing is done, particularly at night, which means broken sleep. But enough of complaining.

I finished the sweater above and the pattern calls for knitted buttons. I made them but don't like them, so will look for some pretty ball buttons at the store next time I go. It is a very easy pattern, done in garter stitch and knitted on circular needles. I have decided that I won't knit on circular needles again, it is too heavy and bulky to be enjoyable. I much prefer smaller pieces on straight needles. And what's the difficulty with sewing up a side seam anyway?

If anyone has advice on blocking sweaters, please let me know. I am hesitant to do this but I know it needs it. I just don't know how much steam I should use and how much I should press the sweater. The yarn is a wool/acrylic blend - mostly wool. And I guess I can call this jacket #7.

The pattern is from Cascade Yarns, I think I wrote about it in a previous post. If you are making this pattern, be aware that it calls for way too much yarn. I have two full skeins left over and, since I bought it in Maine, I can't return it. Perhaps I will be knitting some scarves or hats in the near future.

I do have some sewing plans afoot. I cut out a pair of pants in black RPL a few days ago, but haven't got around to doing anything except putting them on the sewing table. I hope to get in there sometime this week, energy permitting. Till later.

Sweater sans boutons

I was sure I would have five buttons in my stash that would work for this sweater, but no it's not to be. You would think that a huge container of buttons would yield 5 usable blue buttons. Alas this necessitates a trip to Fabricville tomorrow to get five buttons; the question is can I get out of the store with just the buttons?

I am excited about this sweater. This is the first sweater that fits; I keep knitting sweaters but they all turn out too big. So this feels like a huge accomplishment. I used to be able to knit things that worked, but it has been years since I seriously knit anything. I guess you lose the sense or something. Anyway, this provides a great sense of accomplishment.

Close up of the collar, which is done in a patterned rib that I find really pretty. The cuffs are also done that way. I made some mistakes, but hey I am not a perfectionist and no one is going to look that close.

The pattern is this one, from the book Aran Tweed, published by Naturally Hand Knit Yarns of New Zealand.

This has made me excited about knitting and the purple sweater to be knit on circular needles is up next. The nice thing about having knitting is that it gives me something to do while watching movies. I am not a TV watcher, but over the past couple of winters, my husband and I watch a movie or two on the weekends. We don't watch new movies (don't want to waste my time watching morally bankrupt junk) so we favour British detective series. The latest is A Touch of Frost, great entertainment centred around an eccentric rough widower with a keen sense of justice.
I also highly recommend the series Doc Martin, incredibly funny series of a surgeon who retires from heart surgery after developing a phobia of blood. He becomes the GP in a coastal town in England - if you like weird characters who don't fit regular holes, check it out.

And, if you are into knitting, check out this blog.
Kitty Couture
Isabelle just taught herself to knit a few months ago and she is incredible! Her work is beautiful. I credit her blog with inspiring me to keep at the knitting.