The Art of Blocking

When I was just starting to knit, I didn't think blocking was important.  (Plus I was too lazy to take the time to do this.)  But just to illustrate, here is why we need to block.

Here are four coasters I knitted for our upcoming basic knitting workshop. Prior to blocking, the sizes were irregular and the ribbed one just shrank into itself.

To block, I washed the coasters in liquid detergent, and squeezed out the excess water by sandwiching them in between two layers of thick towels.  Then I pinned them, gently stretching them into square shapes, on to foam boards.  (I used foam puzzle mats I bought from the toy section of Landmark for less than Php200 for a pack of 8, and a small box of sewing pins from National Bookstore.)

And voila!