Deb n' My Shawls

This is a shot of Debra Emery's shawl (L) and my Rocky Pi Shawl (R). We are first and second place respectively, but we were in different categories, so we're still speaking to one another...teehee. Seriously we're both quite excited to have received accolades in this, our first foray into County Fair entries. To say the least we were tickled pink. I encourage all of my fellow fiber friends to enter next year. It's a blast to see your designs exhibitied, ribbons or no!

Blocking the Rocky Pi Shawl

I've just given the shawl a soak in a mild soap and rinsed, pressed dry rolled in a towel.

  You can see that I have started to thread the mono-filament through the shawl's points.

This is a close up of how the mono-filament threads through your lace edging points.

If you use the kind for a weed whacker and it has sharp edges, you can do as I did and sand it down which softens the sharp edges.

After the shawl is theaded, I place a large pin in the center of the shawl and measure out to the radius I want. Mine was 28". Then I place pins along the edge of the mono-filament to keep it stretched in the circle shape.

It's a good idea to calculate what circumference you want for the final blocking to make sure you have enough mono-filament before you start to thread. I always run out :).

In circles the circumference is 3.14 (p) times the Diameter. Always give yourself a few extra feet over this measurement.

Now it sits to dry. It's warm here today so I figure it will dry out by tomorrow.

Rocky Pi Completed

Well, here she is, finished. I haven't blocked it yet, I sort of enjoy the bit of ruffling the shawl gives when it's unblocked.  This was one of the nicest knitting experiences. The fiber is a millspun from Brookfarm Alpaca, but this particular batch is a Blue Ribbon winning blanket fleece in a natural fawn color. It is so incredibly soft.

I'm planning on entering this gal in the Sonoma Couty Faire in July, so I will block it for that. I'll do comparison photos :). Ain't she a treat?