Blocking question

Now that I have found some thick foam mats to use...I have a question.
When blocking a rectangle or square shape piece, do you start at one
edge and work to the other? Or do you start in the middle and work
your way out like you would for a circle?

Sorry if this sounds like a silly question, but it's late and my brain
has ceased to function. : )
Christy

On Feb 17, 9:23*am, "vanmier" vanmier AT peoplepc DOT com wrote:
Now that I have found some thick foam mats to use...I have a question.
When blocking a rectangle or square shape piece, do you start at one
edge and work to the other? *Or do you start in the middle and work
your way out like you would for a circle?

Sorry if this sounds like a silly question, but it's late and my brain
has ceased to function. : )
Christy

I don`t block knittind or crochet at all , but even if i did i
wouldn`t put it on foam but on a towel Knitting isn`t something you
waqnt to STRECH out !!!! you want it to rest ,,,
mirjam

On Feb 17, 4:14*pm, wrote:
On Feb 17, 9:23*am, "vanmier" vanmier AT peoplepc DOT com wrote:

Now that I have found some thick foam mats to use...I have a question.
When blocking a rectangle or square shape piece, do you start at one
edge and work to the other? *Or do you start in the middle and work
your way out like you would for a circle?

Sorry if this sounds like a silly question, but it's late and my brain
has ceased to function. : )
Christy

I don`t block knittind or crochet at all , but even if i did i
wouldn`t put it on foam but on a towel Knitting isn`t something you
waqnt to STRECH out !!!! you want it to rest ,,,
mirjam

Thanks for posting this, Mirjam, because I rarely block myself, and
sometimes I feel guilty about it. Now I won't!

Higs,
Katherine

I knit a baby afghan once for my brother's new baby. I didn't block it
either, although the directions said to block it. My big problem is not
having a flat surface large enough to block something. So I sent it to my
aunt, who lives down the street from my brother, and asked her to block it.
She's got plenty of clean flat surfaces in her home. I don't know if she
blocked it or not, but my brother liked it either way.

Only justification I can see for blocking something is holding it in the
right shape (a rectangle can come out oddly like a trapezoid or other
shape). I just don't have the patience (or space) to do it.

wrote in message
...
On Feb 17, 9:23 am, "vanmier" vanmier AT peoplepc DOT com wrote:
Now that I have found some thick foam mats to use...I have a question.
When blocking a rectangle or square shape piece, do you start at one
edge and work to the other? Or do you start in the middle and work
your way out like you would for a circle?

Sorry if this sounds like a silly question, but it's late and my brain
has ceased to function. : )
Christy

I don`t block knittind or crochet at all , but even if i did i
wouldn`t put it on foam but on a towel Knitting isn`t something you
waqnt to STRECH out !!!! you want it to rest ,,,
mirjam

Mystified One wrote:
I knit a baby afghan once for my brother's new baby. I didn't block it
either, although the directions said to block it. My big problem is not
having a flat surface large enough to block something. So I sent it to my
aunt, who lives down the street from my brother, and asked her to block it.
She's got plenty of clean flat surfaces in her home. I don't know if she
blocked it or not, but my brother liked it either way.

Only justification I can see for blocking something is holding it in the
right shape (a rectangle can come out oddly like a trapezoid or other
shape). I just don't have the patience (or space) to do it.

Me neither, though I found if I leave a scarf over the back of a chair
or the sofa, the cats sitting on it blocks it nicely. grin

Lace however, is said to need to be blocked, to stretch it out for both
size and to show the pattern.

sue

On Sun, 17 Feb 2008 02:23:46 -0500, "vanmier" vanmier AT peoplepc DOT
com wrote:

Now that I have found some thick foam mats to use...I have a question.
When blocking a rectangle or square shape piece, do you start at one
edge and work to the other? Or do you start in the middle and work
your way out like you would for a circle?

Sorry if this sounds like a silly question, but it's late and my brain
has ceased to function. : )

There are two kinds of blocking. I call them lace blocking and pat
blocking, but most people call them all blocking.

Lace blocking is the one that uses all the pins and the foam mats and
the stretching. The final instruction for lace will say something
like "Block severely" and they mean it. This is where the crumpled
little piece of fabric blossoms into a much larger, lovely lace
masterpiece. You stretch the lace out to make the pattern bloom and
have the lace lie flat. Pin the corners to the finished size and then
start at the centers and pin out from there. Work across the piece,
first a couple of pins on one side and then a couple on the opposite
side. Then switch to an adjacent side and pin it and its opposite.Use
a yardstick or other straight edge and lots of pins.

Pat blocking is for everything else. You want to pat and pull the
piece into its final shape. This evens the stitches and straightens
the item. It's pretty much covered by "dry flat", although you can do
it by misting with water or using steam, not just hand-washing. I
always wash a finished piece of knitting in the way it will be done
normally, which usually means hand or machine wash and dry flat.
If the piece is going to be tumbled dry, forget all this and toss it
into the drier.

Mary "Lace blocking is harder, but the results are spectacular"
--
Mary Shafer Retired aerospace research engineer
We didn't just do weird stuff at Dryden, we wrote reports about it.
or
Visit my blog at http://thedigitalknitter.blogspot.com/

On Sun, 17 Feb 2008 14:27:24 -0800 (PST), Katherine
wrote:

On Feb 17, 4:14*pm, wrote:
On Feb 17, 9:23*am, "vanmier" vanmier AT peoplepc DOT com wrote:

Now that I have found some thick foam mats to use...I have a question.
When blocking a rectangle or square shape piece, do you start at one
edge and work to the other? *Or do you start in the middle and work
your way out like you would for a circle?

Sorry if this sounds like a silly question, but it's late and my brain
has ceased to function. : )
Christy

I don`t block knittind or crochet at all , but even if i did i
wouldn`t put it on foam but on a towel Knitting isn`t something you
waqnt to STRECH out !!!! you want it to rest ,,,
mirjam

Thanks for posting this, Mirjam, because I rarely block myself, and
sometimes I feel guilty about it. Now I won't!

I assume you don't knit lace. If you do, you should feel guilty about
it, because lace doesn't reach its full beauty without severe
blocking. It also doesn't reach its full size.

I'm pretty sure the OP is talking about lace, with the foam mats, etc.
The foam mats are very popular for blocking lace. Lace has to be
blocked vigorously to stretch it out and open up the pattern.

Mary "On the other hand, blocking socks is kind of silly."
--
Mary Shafer Retired aerospace research engineer
We didn't just do weird stuff at Dryden, we wrote reports about it.
or
Visit my blog at http://thedigitalknitter.blogspot.com/

On Sun, 17 Feb 2008 15:44:53 -0800, "Reunite Gondwanaland (Mary
Shafer)" wrote:

Lace blocking is the one that uses all the pins and the foam mats and
the stretching. The final instruction for lace will say something
like "Block severely" and they mean it. This is where the crumpled
little piece of fabric blossoms into a much larger, lovely lace
masterpiece. You stretch the lace out to make the pattern bloom and
have the lace lie flat.

I'd forgotten that I'd posted before and after blocking photos for my
second Diamond Fantasy Shawl. They're he
http://thedigitalknitter.blogspot.com/2007/12/lace-shawls-and-blocking.html
These photos really show the difference.

Mary "Almost surprising how different they are"
--
Mary Shafer Retired aerospace research engineer
We didn't just do weird stuff at Dryden, we wrote reports about it.
or
Visit my blog at http://thedigitalknitter.blogspot.com/

*

I'd forgotten that I'd posted before and after blocking photos for my
second Diamond Fantasy Shawl. *They're he
http://thedigitalknitter.blogspot.com/2007/12/lace-shawls-and-blockin...
These photos really show the difference.

Mary "Almost surprising how different they are"
--
Mary Shafer * Retired aerospace research engineer
We didn't just do weird stuff at Dryden, we wrote reports about it.
or
Visit my blog athttp://thedigitalknitter.blogspot.com/* *

I have read all the arguments , seen women do all kinds of blocking ,
I STILL DON`T DO it ,,, not even for Lace , i treat my knits like i
treat my woven piece ,,,, after i jave streched it , straightened it ,
threads and wools ALL Wish to go back to their natuarl position , i
let a new clothing item , crochet or knit rest a night before wearing
it ,,, it can be rolled up in a towel on which i just lay it as IS ,
no streching ] and may roll it into the towel ,,,
Weaving is blocked because the threads need to be STABLIZED ,
knitting /crochet doesn`t need it ,,,, One has to remember that
knitting /crochet came into the world after weaving thus some habits
and tradiyonal thought were transformed into that techniques ,,,,
which they DON~T Need ,, i have made some complicated laces ,,, i
just rolled them for the night in towel that was a bit humid [ we live
in hot country] next day you saw their glory ,,,, the humidity does
this instead of the pulling .....And PINS ,,, No No No ,,,,,,
I learned knitting lace from old ladies who never blocked it ,,, not
even those who threw it into Sugar or Starch theirs, i learned the
humid towel roll if needed. As to other knitting it sorts itself out
after 1-2 uses ,,,,,
ps all my life i Checked out all knids of ADVICE given about knitting
crochet etc,,,, and i only do those that seem rational or needed to
me ,,, Every one is free to decide what they feel is right for
them ...
Take that habit of Not knitting the first or last st in a row ,,,, I
refused to do it from mt first knitting days , because Nobody told me
why they do it ??? nore what`s good for !!!!
I knit =cast on my stiches and am happy with it ,,, I start crochet
not from a row of singles , but i cast on DC of half Dc , ever since
i learned it ,, and am happy with it .
Thus my advice Try and see what WORKS Best for You ,,, but even when
you block ,,, use some cloth under it !!!!and DON `t strech ,,,,
mirjam

wrote:

I have read all the arguments , seen women do all kinds of blocking ,
I STILL DON`T DO it ,,, not even for Lace , i treat my knits like i
treat my woven piece ,,,, after i jave streched it , straightened it ,
threads and wools ALL Wish to go back to their natuarl position , i
let a new clothing item , crochet or knit rest a night before wearing
it ,,, it can be rolled up in a towel on which i just lay it as IS ,
no streching ] and may roll it into the towel ,,,
Weaving is blocked because the threads need to be STABLIZED ,
knitting /crochet doesn`t need it ,,,, One has to remember that
knitting /crochet came into the world after weaving thus some habits
and tradiyonal thought were transformed into that techniques ,,,,
which they DON~T Need ,, i have made some complicated laces ,,, i
just rolled them for the night in towel that was a bit humid [ we live
in hot country] next day you saw their glory ,,,, the humidity does
this instead of the pulling .....And PINS ,,, No No No ,,,,,,
I learned knitting lace from old ladies who never blocked it ,,, not
even those who threw it into Sugar or Starch theirs, i learned the
humid towel roll if needed. As to other knitting it sorts itself out
after 1-2 uses ,,,,,
ps all my life i Checked out all knids of ADVICE given about knitting
crochet etc,,,, and i only do those that seem rational or needed to
me ,,, Every one is free to decide what they feel is right for
them ...
Take that habit of Not knitting the first or last st in a row ,,,, I
refused to do it from mt first knitting days , because Nobody told me
why they do it ??? nore what`s good for !!!!
I knit =cast on my stiches and am happy with it ,,, I start crochet
not from a row of singles , but i cast on DC of half Dc , ever since
i learned it ,, and am happy with it .
Thus my advice Try and see what WORKS Best for You ,,, but even when
you block ,,, use some cloth under it !!!!and DON `t strech ,,,,
mirjam

I've never blocked anything, mostly because it's acrylic anyway. I have
two wool scarves I haven't blocked and they're okay. The edges fold over
a little which seems to bother a lot of knitters, they want them `nice
and straight'. I may try your damp towel idea on them to see if it
`improves' them or not. One of the reasons people give for blocking is
to get a piece to the correct size so it fits. Since I knit a pattern in
my own gauge to fit me, and ignore the pattern gauge, I don't have this
problem. I think some knitters are overly strict about getting the gauge
right on. I'm very casual about it, but my things fit. If they don't I
rip out and use a different number of stitches.

sue