Fini, Finished, Ende

All done. And I love it. Laceweight cashmere from my favorite place. I have to confess that this is the first thing I've ever blocked. I never saw the need for it. You make it, you wear it. What's the problem? Ah, yes, never again.

The shawl went from this - approx. 61" wide by 30" long - to this - 66" wide by 36" deep. And the pattern is so much more open and defined. I used pseudo blocking wires (fluxless welding rods; much cheaper, & since we have a Harbor Freight almost across the street, much more readily available), 100 T-pins - because that's all the store had - and a large handful of quilting pins.I ran the rods through the top edge and the center spine, bracing them in place with T-pins. That allowed me to pull against the rods as I shaped and pinned each half of the shawl. I sprayed it liberally with water and let it dry overnight. (The cats thought it was their new bed. Even when it was soaking wet, they wouldn't stay off. Typical.)

I could easily have used 3 times the number of T-pins; as soon as Michael's restocks, I'm buying them out again. And I want more welding rods, longer than the 12" ones I have now. I love how easy they were to use.

(Tech Specs: Lily Chin's Mock Faroese Shawl, "H" crochet hook, 2.5 skeins (400 yds. each) Fearless Fibers 2-ply cashmere in Exotic Wood. Shawl could easily be made with only 2 skeins.

Yarn Tails Tags: Crochet, Lacevember, epscraps