Blocking your crochet project. What is it and why do we do it? Hi guys, welcome back to my channel. My name is Tiffany Hanson. Thank you so much for joining me today in this video We're going over all things blocking what is blocking? Why should you block what methods are there to block what materials do you need to block something how to do it? Also some warnings that are good for everyone to be aware of and some optional things that You can use some people choose to do it one way some people choose to do it another way And it's just great to know all of the options before you dive right in If at any point in this video, you do like what you see Please push that thumbs up button And if you haven't yet subscribe to my channel and click the bell that way you get notified whenever I release a brand new video I try to release a brand new video every single Friday covering a wide range of different types of crochet projects Tips and tricks all things crochet related and you're not going to want to miss out All right, so what is blocking? Blocking is simply taking your finished project adding water or steam and then stretching it to your desired shape There are actually a lot of benefits to blocking your item whether it be you're sewing two pieces together Or you just want to take one item and reshape it to your desired shape Blocking helps align pieces better to make it easier to sew them together It helps to straighten out sides of blankets reshape items such as the tops of shawls where there might be a little bit of an arc And you want it to be flat Blocking can help with this also if your item has defined stitches detailed stitches But your fibers make it hard to see those details If you block your item you will be able to see all of the detail clearly and really bring out the beauty of your project The materials that you're going to need to block your item will include a flat surface That can reflect or retract water such surfaces would include these foam mats Or you can even use a flat table surface with a towel on top of the table So that way it can absorb the water from your blocked item You can get really get creative with this You just basically want a surface that is flat that you can lay your item on top of that you can either pin Into so you can shape your item or you can clamp on to So that way you can shape your item another item you're going to need are rust proof tea pins If you have the foam mats you can use these rough these rust proof tea pins to pin your item or clamps To clamp down your item you'll need a measuring tape if you don't have these foam mats with the lines or grids on them The measuring tape will allow you to make sure every side is even You'll need a spray bottle if you're doing a spray blocking You'll need a steamer or an iron that has a steam feature if you're doing steam blocking You'll need a bucket of warm water if you're doing wet blocking A towel is optional there just to help wipe off your hands when your hands are wet optional is a no rinse wool wash Deturgent that you can put in the bucket of water if you are wet blocking and that's no rinse wool detergent Will make your item really soft and it will also help with other features in the blocking process But this is completely optional not required For your convenience I'll have links to all of these items in the description section and the comment section below in this video So that way you can have quick fast easy access to anything that you may need To wet block an item you will take the item that you want to block and submerge it into a bowl of warm water Then you will keep that item in the water until it has absorbed all the water It could possibly absorb some people take 20 minutes to absorb items or keep them in the water Some people will leave an item in the water for 24 hours This is completely optional personal. There's no right or wrong answer here Once that item has absorbed all the water. It's going to absorb you will take the item out of the water Some people will gently ring out any excess water that might be in the item For me, I will literally just take the item from the water and place it on to the mat That way I don't have any wrinkling or bunching of the item And some people will take that item. They'll place it on a towel roll the towel up and then roll it back out Just again to get rid of any excess water that might be in the item Then you will lay the item on the mat or towel or flat surface pin it to your desired shape and then allow it to air dry Once it is fully air dried then you can release the clamps or the pins and your item has been officially blocked To pin an item you will begin in the corners that way you can create the structure or the dimension that you know You want the item to be and then after you have pinned down every corner or every edge Then you will go into the inside between each corner between each edge to make sure you are lining your item up in your desired shape Spray blocking is different from wet blocking in the sense that you will take the item that you want to block and pin it down first before you get it wet You will begin in the corners making sure each corner is secured Before you start pinning down or clamping down the sides of the item giving it shape Once you have given the item complete shape you will take the spray bottle Missed the item until it is damp then set it aside and allow it to air dry once the item is completely dry You remove the clamps remove the pins and your item is blocked Like spray blocking with steam blocking you want to pin down your item first before you get it wet Once the item is completely pinned down in your desired shape You will take your steamer and keep it six to eight inches away from your item You do not want to place the steamer Really really close to your item and you definitely do not want to lay your iron on your item You want to make sure that there is a nice gap space between your steamer and your item that you want to block You will steam the item until it is damp then you will set it aside allow it to air dry and then remove the clamps to block your item Honestly the longest part of this entire blocking process will be the waiting for your item to air dry It will take anywhere from 24 hours to 48 hours for your item to completely air dry It depends on your climate it depends on where you live how warm or cold it is where you are All things will come into factor make sure that you don't keep it in direct sunlight So you don't have any sun bleaching happening to your item But definitely give your item the chance to air dry completely before you take away the pins or the clamps You Some warnings to consider before you even begin blocking if you are choosing to use an iron to steam block your project Make sure the flat part of your iron never touches your project What will happen is something called killing the fibers or killing the project in which you actually melt the yarn and it creates this very awful texture Another thing to consider when Pinnning down your project is you really want to find stainless steel or rust proof tea pins When I started blocking I started using these particular pins to block my item and they actually did start to rust Around the pin itself which started to transfer to my projects. It was pretty awful So some things to take into consideration All right now that we have gone over all things blocking Ultimately, it's your choice if you'd like to block your project or not I really hope you enjoyed this video if you did you might also really like these videos right here Also check out this video, which is just a recommended video for you to watch Thank you so much for spending time with me today talking about blocking I always love spending time with you. I hope you have the best day and I will see you with my next video Bye guys