Learning Curve

Mooser,

I am currently (re)blocking the center piece to that blanket I should have finished years ago. So far, it has been far more of an adventure that it probably should, but oh well. I have been researching different blocking techniques, and decided that steam might be a good option since I am low on space and towels, and wet blocking can be so messy. I started by stripping my bed of sheets, mattress pad and laundry. I then covered the bed in a plastic sheet I found, since I had read that a plastic sheet can be substituted for the underlying towels and would allow the piece to dry faster. My cats love things that make rustling noise. All cats do. And they LOVE it when I make my bed. So they were there, my precious little helpers, trying to subdue the large, shiny, crinkly thing that was threatening to suffocate my bed. In the end, I needed to use pieces of string to outline the dimensions of my knitting, and 250 odd pins to get it into shape. All I needed was the iron.

 The iron, thanks to my incredibly tall boyfriend, is in a cupboard I can just reach, and is full of water since it was recently used. There is now water everywhere - not only because I spilled the full water tank on myself while fetching it from the cupboard, but because I am incapable of remembering to keep the iron in the correct upright position when not in use. It also kept beeping at me, and I'm still not sure why.

 I waved the iron over the piece until my back hurt, and I'm not convinced it did the job. I took a pin out to test and the edge rolled up on itself. Not a good sign.

My cats had fun, though, and I can't wait to see how my ever tolerant boyfriend reacts to see our bed covered in plastic, pins, and pieces. Should be interesting!

Bonus pictures of Iroh enjoying his new plastic kitty tent, and Nermal curling up under one of the pieces.

Love,
Beans

P.S. Lace update: I have successfully knitted a small square of lace weight yarn with size 4 needles. Attempts to knit an actual lace pattern not as fruitful but will keep trying. We ordered the yarn to knit the shawls, plus extra for plenty of trial and error. I'll have to perfect my blocking techniques before blocking all that delicate lace!