Don't you think that bowl and cowl should rhyme? Well it was just a thought. I finished my daughter's cowl last night while watching the very last Harry Potter movie with the family. The drama had the stitches flying off the needles! I only just soaked it early this morning and I am not sure if I will get a photo of it being worn. I have my fingers crossed but just in case here are two photos of it drying in the guest bedroom.
I always block my knits and I always use a wool wash. I like knowing that I do not have to rinse the soap out of the knitwear. I think soaking allows the fiber to "bloom", it also removes any chemicals and last bits of dye that are still in the wool after it has been processed. It always feels softer to me.
I fill up the sink (or tub) with very warm water and add a splash of wool wash then throw the knitted item in and submerge it. I soak at least 20 minutes.......I have been known to soak for 7 hours because I forgot and that's okay too. Then I wring (yes, wring) it out. I try to do it very very gently. If it is a sweater I toss it into the washer and put it through the spin/drain cycle. DO NOT wring cashmere-it is too delicate. I only wring wool, alpaca, and silk fibers.
If it is lace, I pin out the project right onto my carpeting. Otherwise I just lay it out and gently reshape it.
I am to much of a chicken to try the hand wash cycle on my front loader, I am afraid I would be crying buckets of tears if it felted my knits.
So anyways, since the word bowl is in the post title, here is a wonderful gift I received from my father and his wife for Christmas. It's a hand crafted yarn bowl from one of their local artisans. Right now it's just holding some lace weight yarn. I have some ideas of some yarn that would be perfect to use in this bowl and see if it really works. When visiting my sister, she was knitting a scarf for her son using the bowl to control the yarn-great invention! I also think it is lovely to look at.
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