Irish Moss Blocking

Today I did something I've only done once before -- blocked. Unless, of course, you count my years as a junior high school offensive tackle. But those days are best left forgotten. The only other knitting item I've ever blocked was a baby blanket -- a nice big rectangle. This was a wee bit more complicated.

I decided to do a bona fide Southern Baptist full-immersion, rather than just spritizing. Here it is in the kitchen sink. You can click on the Irish Moss link on the right to get a few more blocking photos.

The last time I was at Hill Country Weavers, I picked up a BlockKit -- a set of pins and blocking wires in a tube. They make the edges very straight. To get these straight edges I had to spend nearly two hours on the floor in my guest bedroom, hunched over wet wool, shoving wires through stitches. I'm hoping it will be worth it. No wonder people don't like blocking.

I'm actually following the instructions and blocking the pieces before assembling the sweater. I understand a lot of knitters don't block until the whole thing is together, but I really wanted to follow the instructions on this one. I've never attempted anything on this scale and I want to follow the directions to the letter.

Tomorrow, we'll see how things look. The ceiling fan will be on full blast all night!