To Block Or Not To Block

Last week, a fellow knitter told me she didn't really understand blocking.  I get that.  I didn't block any of my earlier knits.  The things I made when I was just getting into knitting didn't really require blocking and the fiber I was using wasn't responsive to it.

I'd try to block my projects, they wouldn't change, and I decided this whole blocking thing was just a fiddly extra step that didn't actually need to be done.

I was wrong.

Here's a Brush Creek Shawl I made for Rhinebeck, pre-blocking.

I used a gradient kit from Black Trillium Fibres in Quartz.

It's a lovely shawl with lots of yarn overs and k2tog/ssk to add detail.  Now let's see what happens after a little bath.

The shawl soaked for about 30 minutes in some wool wash and warm water.  After that, it got a good wringing in a fluffy towel and laid out for blocking.

Already much bigger.  The wingspan is approximately 4 feet, and the hight is nearly 2.

The yarn overs are more apparent.

And we can see the center line through the middle.

To Block Or Not To Block.

Definitely to block.  To swatch or not to swatch still needs some convincing.