Nothing makes me happier than finishing a big lace project- a shawl, a scarf, or a fancy-pants sweater, and stretching it out across my blocking boards.  There’s something alchemical and transformative about blocking lace.  It’s kind of magical.

You start with a little blob of knits, purls and yarn overs, and toss it in some water to soak.

It stretches, and changes, and I think I’m going to accidentally rip it in half (especially if it’s something particularly delicate).  But, then, I get it pinned out, and hey, presto!  You can suddenly see all the lovely stitch detail.Even when you remove it from the board, the fabric is totally transformed from the ugly knot you started with.  Now, it’s flat, beautiful and incredibly drape-y and wonderful.

And, of course, pinning out scallops and points on finished lace shawls always makes them look even better!  (Remember how we tried to avoid stretching the knitting so much that it made points on scarves and socks?  You can do it on purpose now!)

Here are a couple shawls I’ve made over the years with interesting borders:

Panache by Lankakomero

Aeolian Shawl by Elizabeth Freeman

Knitting lace can be a tedious and slow process, but there’s nothing more satisfying than pulling out the last pin from your dried shawl and looking at your beautiful creation.