Why Blocking is Important

 

Do you remember looking at the in-progress pictures of my Relax pullover and seeing how wonky the pieces looked?  Stockinette stitch (which is what this sweater is, except for a narrow ribbing) rolls.  The horizontal edges of stockinette roll to the front while the vertical edges roll to the back.  This not only makes it difficult to photograph, it makes it difficult to seam and it doesn't always hang right either.

With this pullover, the front and back are knit, then there's a three needle bind off joining the shoulder seams, and finally the side seams are sewn together.  To finish, I'll pick up stitches for the neck band and more stitches for the sleeves, which are knit in the round.  All of the joining, seaming, and picking up of stitches are MUCH easier when you're not fighting with naturally rolling stockinette pieces.  This is where blocking comes in.  My edges are now lying flat and they will be much easier to work with than if I had left them in their natural state.  Blocking also kind of sorts out the stitches within the fabric, making them all even and straight, which is why there will be a second blocking once I've completely finished the sweater.  It just makes everything look neater and completely finished.