This is a shawl that I recently finished knitting. I'm in the process of blocking it out. The upper, neater portion has been pinned to measurement---while the lower portion has not. I am always amazed at how blocking transforms the appearance of lace from a squashed, disorganized jumble to an elegant pattern of angles, eyelets, and curves. It has to be stretched beyond its natural inclinations before it becomes something that makes sense...... I think this is true for people as well as lace.
