Presenting Gaia

Gaia’s done....now ready for blocking. Here’s a mini tutorial on blocking complete with artsy fartsy photos.

First, mix a little warm water with some Eucalan wool wash – I like the lavender scent – and let the scarf sit in the water for about 15 minutes.

While the scarf is soaking, gather up the materials you need to use for blocking:

A firm, yet pinnable surface (I use foam floor mats), twice as many pins a you think you will need (I used 99), about 8 blocking wires or 36” stainless steel welding rods available at Princess Auto, a metre stick and a spray bottle full of water to keep the cat off the blocking mat.

Take the scarf from the sink of water, and squeeze out as much water as you can, then roll it in a towel to get even more water out. The scarf will be barely damp now and ready to be smooshed around.

Plop it on the mat, and start weaving the blocking wires in from the middle to the outside edge and one blocking wire down through the centre stitch. You will need two for the top.

Secure the scarf to the mat with a few pins in the middle and along the top edge eyeballing each side to approximately the same width. Now measure and adjust so each side is the same width – in this case 30 inches.

Now, start weaving the side edges and you will need two 36 inch wires for each side. Overlap them by about 8 inches where they meet to keep the side stiff.

Once the side has been completely wired (like I am now after 3 cups of coffee) secure it to the mat in about 5 or 6 evenly spaced pins.  (One of the artsy shots - pretty?)

Now begin pulling out and pinning each little triangle of the edging (if you made one) or pin on the outside edge to keep the edge sharp and straight. Part of the side has been pinned; notice how nice the triangles look stretched.)

Repeat this process for the other side, and then secure the wire in the middle. Make any adjustments you need - I had to fix the bottom triangle on the right side - you can see it's crooked in the photo.

Now let the scarf dry for a day or two, undisturbed. Don’t be tempted to remove a few pins to see how the scarf looks. Leave it alone! I speak from experience. Blocking once is fun, twice not so much!
Some more artsy fartsy shots for your entertainment.

Only one pin is in focus in the above shot! I've been trying take blurry closeups for a year now, and finally figured it out!

What's next? That's a surprise for next month....