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Hands Occupied

Contemporary yarn crafts by Heidi Gustad. Knitting, crochet, latch hook and macrame.

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How to Block a Knitting Project

March 18, 2014 4 Comments

How to Block a Knitting Project at Hands Occupied

Blocking is something I took years to start doing with finished knitting projects. Just like test swatches. It turns out that both can be pretty important as your knitting gets more sophisticated. Especially if you are making a wearable item, testing your yarn by knitting a sample swatch and blocking it is how you’ll establish a good fit. Here are the basics of how to block a knitting project.

Supplies

finished knitting project
cold water
clean basin or sink
wool wash (I like Eucalan and Soak.)
towel
timer
blocking board (optional)
pins (optional)

Directions

Yesterday I shared how to set yarn color so it won’t bleed, potentially ruining a finished project. Here’s where we left off:

These Colors Won't Run: How to set yarn color

The finished knitting project was given a special bath to set the color. If you’re not worried about setting the color, you can simply soak your knitting in a bath of tepid to lukewarm water with the wool wash of your choice. Stir around your project in the bath to get the wool wash into the yarn. Let soak for 30 minutes.

Full disclosure: Since I already soaked my knitting in a vinegar bath for 30 minutes, and since I used a simple cotton yarn instead of a wool, I skipped the wool wash, but I normally use it otherwise. 

How to Block a Knitting Project at Hands Occupied

When the half hour has passed, gently squeeze out the excess water, but do not wring it out. Lay out your project on a towel. I always use a dark towel like this old maroon one, particularly when I haven’t done the colorfast bath, in case some color bleeds.

How to Block a Knitting Project at Hands Occupied

Roll up the knitting in the towel like a burrito.

How to Block a Knitting Project at Hands Occupied

Pound all over your towel burrito, then turn it 90 degrees and pound all over it again. This gets out the excess water without wringing it, which can damage your knitting.

How to Block a Knitting Project at Hands Occupied

Next, lay out your work on a flat surface. If you need to use a blocking board and pins to set it to specific dimensions, you can do that. Since this is just a cotton baby blanket, laying it square was all I needed to do.

How to Block a Knitting Project at Hands Occupied

Filed Under: DIY FYI, Knitting, Knitting & Crochet Tagged With: blocking. knit, diy fyi, fit, how to block knitting, Knitting

About Heidi

Heidi Gustad is a craft book author & content creator in love with primary colors & vintage vibes. She specializes in knitting, crochet, latch hook and macramé, and her first book, Latch Hook: 12 Projects for the Modern Maker, is out now!

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Comments

  1. Kokeshette

    March 18, 2014 at 12:19 pm

    Thanks for this post and the pictures ! I have to admit, I don’t block my knitting projects yet… Only recently I started to make test swatches…
    I guess I still don’t have enough years of knitting behind me ;) (and I knit cowls, mostly…)
    I will try for the next project, with the help of your post !

    Reply
  2. María Ivelisse Fortunato

    March 24, 2014 at 11:43 am

    Excelente este articulo me encanta lo voy a poner en practica con mis trabajos.

    Gracias

    Reply
  3. Bonnie mcmillen

    March 30, 2014 at 12:23 pm

    I feel so dumb, I always thought blocking was done with an iron and a damp towel.

    Reply
    • Heidi

      March 30, 2014 at 9:18 pm

      You’re 100% smart! There’s more than one way to block a knitting project: http://www.knitty.com/ISSUEwinter02/FEATdiyknitter.html This is just my preferred way :).

      Reply

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Heidi Gustad from Hands Occupied / Craft Book Author and Knitting, Crochet, Latch Hook and Macrame Designer

Hi! I’m Heidi, an author, yarn craft designer and content creator specializing in knitting, crochet, latch hook & macrame. My work unapologetically features primary colors and vintage-meets-modern style. My first book, Latch Hook: 12 Projects for the Modern Maker, is now available!

Professionally I’m most known for: advanced intarsia knitting design & modern latch hook design.

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A new YouTube tutorial is live today covering how A new YouTube tutorial is live today covering how to knit the Little Butterfly Stitch (aka Bowknot Stitch). It adds so much cute character to simple stockinette. Only a little funky to knit, and it packs a huge visual punch! 🦋 
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Find the video & written stitch pattern on the blog and YouTube, links are in bio. 
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#kpambassadorsfeb21 #sponsored
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Yarn: @kelbournewoolens Germantown in Baby Blue via @knit_picks. Needles: Prism Interchangeables, also from Knit Picks. 
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Pictured: a light blue swatch of Little Butterfly Stitch knitting on a pink background. A skein of yarn and a few stitches of knitting are nearby.
“You’re telling me words can be pronounced in “You’re telling me words can be pronounced in different ways and mean the same things?!” 👀 Posting this here, just to make it clear: when anyone says skayne, skeen, or skyne, it can be safely assumed we’re talking about a bundle o’ yarn,  a SKEIN. It’s not necessary to shame someone for using a word that is known to have MULTIPLE common pronunciations. 🧶
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Can you plz comment sharing how you say SKEIN and where you learned it? The OED happens to say SKAYNE, but it’s not a personal attack if someone says SKEEN and you say SKYNE or even Saskatoon. I’m legitimately curious. We don’t all knit or crochet the same way, and craft evolves a bit like language - it is passed on. There is so much value in having conversations about & embracing these variations! ✌🏻
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Pictured: A blond woman holds a skein of mustard yellow yarn up to her head like a phone, looking shocked. She’s wearing glasses & a knit sweater. 
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#handsoccupied #heidigustad #skein #yarn #yarncraft #knit #crochet #yarnaddict #knitincolor #soldotnacrop #language #englishisweird #oed #oxfordenglishdictionary
Sometimes my weekend projects involve hair rather Sometimes my weekend projects involve hair rather than yarn. Here’s the latest mediocre-but-improving result of my slow quest to learn to set vintage inspired curls. 💇🏼‍♀️ I’m hoping to be able to wash my hair less using a regular vintage set, but we’ll see if it ends up being practical. 😆 Hair frustrates me so much more than crafts! 
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Do you also style your hair using vintage methods? If you have any tips for vintage hair styling or good resources to share, please do!
I suppose this is one way to decide what yarn colo I suppose this is one way to decide what yarn color suits your pooch. 😆 Navy really might be Woodrow‘s color - what do you think? 
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Pictured: A medium sized, brown, senior dog asleep on a green bed. For some reason a donut ball of navy wool yarn sits on his head.
The first stitch tutorial of the new year is live The first stitch tutorial of the new year is live on YouTube! Diamond Brocade is a great knit+purl only stitch for beginners or anyone wanting a classic look for their knitting project. Find the video with a written stitch pattern on the blog or head directly to the video on YouTube. Both are linked in bio. ✌🏻 
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