In Which the Pirate Plans a Blanket.

My first thought for the baby blanket I’m about to knit was that a feather and fan pattern would look lovely with the variegations in this yarn. I already know the pattern, it’s easy and memorizable, and it will look complex even though it’s not really. But then I started thinking… lace. Acrylic yarn. No blocking. Lace needs blocking, doesn’t it? There’s no blocking acrylic. The best you can do is “kill” it, which involves steaming it very carefully so as not to melt it, and stretching it to the shape you want, but that’s not really the same as blocking a piece knit from animal fiber. (Dear Canadian Sister, I typed “fibre” the first time I wrote that. You’re rubbing off on me!)

Ravelry to the rescue! I did a pattern search for feather and fan baby blankets, and turned up this lovely piece: Feather and Fan Rainbow Blanket. It’s knit in acrylic and the lace looks good! The ripples are all rippley and the yarnovers show the way they ought to. While I’m not going to use this pattern exactly, at least now I have some evidence that the stitch will work with the yarn I’ve chosen.

I ordered lace needles in size 8.

As for the Bloo Sock, Janis rightly pointed out that a k2, p2 ribbing doesn’t flow smoothly into a k3, p1 ribbing. I showed the beginnings of the sock to Pirate-Husband, who suggested that a k6, p2 ribbing for the body of the sock would flow nicely. I think it will also look better considering how many stitches there are, so that’s what I’m going to do. Flow problem solved!