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Blocking
Wet, spray and steam blocking: what each does, which fibers want which, and how to pin a shawl or a sweater so it dries into the size on the schematic.
By The StudioPublished Jul 22, 20264 min read
Blocking is wetting or steaming a finished piece and letting it dry in the shape you want. It evens out stitches, opens lace, straightens edges and sets a garment to its schematic measurements. A shawl off the hook looks small and crumpled; blocked, it is a third larger and every stitch is visible. It is the step that makes handmade look finished, and it is not hard.
Three methods
| Method | How | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Wet blocking | Soak 20 minutes, squeeze, pin flat, dry | Wool, alpaca, blends, lace of any fiber |
| Spray blocking | Pin dry, mist until damp, dry | Cotton, pieces that must not stretch, quick touch-ups |
| Steam blocking | Pin, hover a steam iron above, never touching | Acrylic (sets it permanently), cotton, garment seams |
Wool and animal fibers respond most because the fiber relaxes when wet and holds its new shape when dry. Cotton and linen relax a little and mostly benefit from evening out. Acrylic does not respond to water at all, but steam heats the plastic fiber just enough that it takes a permanent set; this is called killing the acrylic, and it is what makes an acrylic shawl drape. It cannot be undone, so steam a swatch first.
Wet blocking, step by step
- 1Weave in all ends first. Blocking settles them; unwoven ends get harder to hide afterward.
- 2Soak the piece in cool water with a little wool wash for 20 minutes, until fully saturated. Do not agitate.
- 3Lift it out supporting its whole weight, squeeze gently, lay on a towel, roll up and press to remove most of the water.
- 4Lay it on blocking mats or a clean towel on a bed. Pat it to the shape and size on the schematic, measuring with a tape.
- 5Pin. For a shawl, pin the points and edges, stretching lace open; for a garment, pin the edges straight without stretching the ribbing.Blocking wires threaded through the edge give a straight line with far fewer pins.
- 6Leave to dry completely, a day or two. Unpin, and it holds the shape until the next wash.
How much to stretch
Lace: hard. The point is to open the holes, and the schematic measurements assume it. Garments: to the measurements on the schematic and no further; a sweater blocked 5 cm too wide stays too wide. Ribbing and cuffs: not at all; let them relax so they keep their stretch. Amigurumi: never; a stuffed toy is not blocked. Textured stitches like cables and post stitches: lightly, since stretching flattens the texture.
Blocking pieces before seaming
A garment worked in pieces is easier to seam if the pieces are blocked first: edges are flat, the row counts line up, and the pieces are the same size. Block all matching pieces at once, pinned to the same measurements, so the two fronts of a cardigan are identical. Block the swatch the same way before measuring gauge, which is why the pattern's gauge says blocked.
Equipment
- Foam blocking mats that lock together, or children's play mats, which are the same thing for less
- Rust-proof T pins; ordinary pins rust and stain wool
- A tape measure and, for shawls, blocking wires
- Wool wash that does not need rinsing
- A spray bottle for spray blocking and a steam iron for acrylic
Reblocking
Blocking lasts until the piece is washed. After a wash, lay it flat and pat it to shape; it goes back where it was with much less effort than the first time. Lace may need repinning after every wash to stay crisp. A garment usually just needs to dry flat. The care and washing article covers what each fiber can take. Every shawl pattern in this shop includes a blocking diagram showing where the pins go; the Tidewater Shawl grows from a crumpled triangle to its full 180 cm edge in exactly this way.
Patterns that use this
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Seaming
Mattress stitch, whipstitch, backstitch and crocheted seams: which to use where on a garment, how to match rows, and how to make a seam disappear.
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Understanding garment sizing and ease
Why a size 3 in one pattern is not a size 3 in another, how ease decides the fit, how to measure yourself, and how to pick a size from a schematic.
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Care and washing
How to wash, dry and store crochet by fiber so it lasts: machine or hand, flat drying, pilling, moths and what the label symbols mean.
