Why You Should Wet Block Your Swatches

May 20, 2016 by Sarah White 1 Comment

I’m guessing by now you know that you should knit swatches before embarking on large projects, especially garments that need to fit a particular person.

Not only is it important to know if you’re getting the same number of stitches per inch as the designer intended, it also gives you a chance to play with the yarn you’ve chosen, to see if you like it in the stitch pattern called for in the pattern and to get to know how it behaves.

Getting to know how it behaves is also why you should wet block your swatches instead of measuring straight off (or, worse, still on) the needles. YarnSub has a great post all about why you should wet block your swatches, but it basically comes down to the fact that gauge changes when you wash yarn, so if you ever intend to wash your finished garment, you need to know what your gauge will be after that point, not in its unwashed state.

When I’m designing something I always take the time to block my swatches, but I don’t always when I’m working from someone else’s pattern, even though I ought to know better because I have seen the changes that can come over yarns after they are washed. Some bloom and halo, others stretch, and you’ll never know what your finished garment might look like once it’s been washed unless you test it first.

Do you knit swatches? Do you block them? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

[Photo via YarnSub.]

Next Pattern:

Comments

Peta says
May 20, 2016 at 10:11 pm
the inevitable Why didn’t I realise this?

Have you read?

Christmas Sock Knitting Patterns

Why should the fireplace get all the fun? Instead of knitting stockings this year, why not whip up a pair of Christmas themed socks? These Christmas sock knitting patterns are lots of fun to make and you can wear them to holiday gatherings for years to come.

For our friends in the southern part of the world, there are the Christmas in July socks from the Kiwi Lodge – Kylie (Ravelry link). These shorty socks are covered in Christmas trees and have bright pink heels and toes for a tropical feel. There’s also an option to make a longer sock if you celebrate somewhere it’s colder.

Twin Stitches Designs (Ravelry) has a fun pattern with mix and match colorwork motifs you can use to build your own cozy Christmas socks. From the sample socks I see Christmas puddings, trucks hauling trees, Santa belts, ornaments and a couple of different borders. There may be more patterns included but the listing doesn’t say. Make a pair that matches or use different motifs on each foot for extra holiday cheer.

If you want to stick to Christmas puddings on your holiday socks, check out this cute pattern from Stone Knits. These lovely socks feature a band of puddings around the leg and a bit of holly by the toes.

These vintage holiday light socks from Grey Owl Knits by Sarah are classic looking and lots of fun at the same time. I love this color combination but of course you can make your lights and stripes whatever colors you like or have on hand. They’re worked using stranded knitting.

And if you’d like even more of a mix of patterns for your socks, try Barbara Ceglédi’s Christmas Chaos socks, a free pattern on Ravelry. The pattern includes 25 little motifs you can choose from, ranging from snowflakes and Christmas trees to elf hats, reindeer and hearts.

Next Pattern:

Comments

Have you read?

Leave a Reply