One of the most active threads on Ravelry is Blocking – Before and After! The posts I like best are those where hours of patient lace knitting are finally and almost magically transformed from what looks like an egg tray into a beautiful airy shawl.
So here’s my just-off-the-needles blob of Madeline Tosh Merino Light
and
after waving my magic wand
stretching on blocking wires…
abracadabra
Gliding
photo links to Ravelry project page
This is Judy Marples’ East Gable Shawl. The feathery, ferny lace pattern was a little less intuitive to knit than some other shawls I’ve made, so I only worked on it when Mr Soknitsome was off learning how to glide!
soknitsome 
Wow that is stunning. Great job!
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Thank you. Having the light shine through helps to show off the lace 🙂
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Whoa, love it, what a difference! That’s such a great example of how lace doesn’t show its true form until it’s blocked 🙂
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Indeed – magic! 🙂
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It always amazes me how much of a difference there is! Good job on that shawl 🙂
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Thank you, yes it makes crawling on the floor, pinning, well worth it!
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Beautiful! I love Judy’s designs and I’ve knit at least two, with more in my queue. I’m going to have another look at this one because your shawl is fantastic.
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Thank you. It is a nice challenge because the pattern is less symmetrical than many. It kind of grows out of the feather/fern parts.
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Beautiful!! I love that thread on rav.
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Thanks! It’s a very inspiring thread, isn’t it?
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Great photos my dear. Always a challenge to make knitting photos appeal (at least for me) but you succeeded!
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Thank you! 🙂 I wedged the shawl into the door frame so it would be stretched. Then I increased the exposure which made the background disappear a bit. It affects the colour but helps highlight the lace pattern.
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It is absolutely stunning. Thanks for the great ideas / tips on taking a good photo, I still don’t get it just right. 🙂
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Thanks, I’m glad it helps. You should see all the photos I take that I disregard! Still a lot of luck in the equation!
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Love them, thank you. 🙂
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It never ceases to amaze me how blocking takes a knitted piece that looks like something the cat horked up and turns it into something so beautiful it takes your breath away. And your shawl is defintely breathtakingly beautiful.
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OH MY GOD this is so beautiful! I love the colour, and the shawl is GORGEOUS! This is really, really great work! I agree with Nancy – you can knit lace as many times as you want, but the Magic of Blocking never ceases to amazes you. 🙂
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Thank you! I’m looking forward to pairing it with a white shirt that has thin stripes in this colour. And yes, blocking is always magical!
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this will look great. Blue looks so good on you and the white/blue combination will have a fresh touch! 🙂 Great choice!
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