Monday, July 23, 2018

Lazadas Flexible Blocking Wires

Blocking knit wear is essential. After spending all that time hand knitting or crocheting something, you don’t want to skip this finishing step. It changes the drape, opens up stitches, evens out your stitches, relaxes the fibers and helps the yarn bloom. I like using blocking wires because it makes it faster to achieve straight lines and to pull things into shape. When Lazadus Knitting Accessories offered to send me their flexible blocking wires, I was really excited to try them. The Deluxe Super Flexible Set comes with 10 super flexible blocking wires 35” (90 cm) long each, 5 super flexible blocking wires 70” (180 cm) long each and 60 Nickel plated T-Pins.

The wires that I have been using for years are thicker and pretty rigid. I can get them to bend a bit, but it requires a lot of pins to hold the shape. Lazadas wires are thin and flexible. One big difference I noticed was how much easier it was for me to thread the wires through my piece. 
I used 3 wires to shape this triangular swatch for a shawl. The bottom curve was effortless to shape! Even the straight sides were easy to pin out. The one thing that you do need to be careful of is when you are uncoiling the wires. They are under tension and can hit you in the face if you do not pay attention.
For this swatch, I used 2 wires. One wire for the top and one on the bottom for the points. Then I used the pins to straighten out the sides. The thin flexible works really well for thinner gauge yarns. It didn't cause gaping holes in the fabric.

Thank you Lazadas Knitting Accessories! I really enjoyed trying out your blocking wires. These wires will now be a part of my knitting tool kit.

Sunday, July 22, 2018

Weekend Crafting with Berroco Yarns

Do you have any weekend crafting plans? I am going to play and swatch with the yarns I got from Berroco at the TNNA Summer 2018 Show. Their sampler bag has all the newest yarn offerings. I can knit, crochet or weave. The sky's the limit! Have a great weekend.