Cursed Victorian Lampshade 101, aka how to block a cowl!

So, the new cowl is lacy, which means you want to block it under tension. And a lot of times that would mean pinning your fabric out on a blocking mat. But a cowl is a tube, so if you pin it out, you’ll end up with creases along the sides where the fabric is folded. But there’s a better way!

If you run a wire through the top and bottom of the cowl, use those wires to push the fabric out in a nice big circle, then make a little X under the top wire, you can hang your cowl up to dry. It will look Absolutely Absurd while it dries! Full on haunted lampshade levels of absurd. But the wires will hold the fabric open, with no creases, so you end up with something absolutely perfect when you take them out.

It’s a neat trick (and I promise not to judge if you suddenly find yourself wanting to knit an actual lampshade)! There’s a short video version of this over on instagram, and a longer one on patreon (it’s on a public post, everyone can see it).

The pattern is called Evolve, and folks on the patreon already got a copy of it for free (yes, if you join now, you’ll totally get it, yes, even at the $3 level which is way less than what patterns cost). Everyone else can use the code SURPRISE for a hefty discount for the next day or two (though doing the patreon thing is actually cheaper, and you’ll get some other nifty stuff too, but that’s up to you).