Blocking shawls

Dear users, dear authors
or rather, this is more of a question for the pros. Why do people block shawls?

Shawls—especially lace shawls—are stretched so that the pattern and shape can unfold properly.
Before doing so, the shawls should be soaked in water for a sufficient amount of time. That means simply letting them soak in a “full bath” for a few hours. This relaxes the wool and allows the fibers to straighten out again. You can use a special wool detergent for the soak, but a splash of shampoo works just as well. Please do not use fabric softener.

After soaking, gently squeeze out the water from the shawl (please do not wring it out) and then stretch it taut on a suitable surface (e.g., foam rubber sheets) using pins.
This will allow the shawls to “grow” a bit more. If you want to enjoy your shawl for a long time, don’t shy away from putting in the effort—it’s worth it! 

I also have two tips to add on the topic of blocking shawls:

• I always spread out my “bathed” shawl on a large microfiber towel and roll it up with the shawl from the narrow side. Then I press the roll flat with my hand. The towel absorbs the moisture. Then I unroll the slightly damp shawl again and block it.
  
  
• To make the long sides of shawls nice and straight, I use welding rods from the hardware store. They are made of brass and very thin. You can connect the 1-meter-long rods to each other to create the needed length for the shawl. Then you thread the fine yet sturdy wires through the edge stitches of the shawl. The wires are pinned to the surface with pins in just a few places. Here is an example from my “Lace Shawl for Beginners”:
  

The second tip is GENIUS. How much work I could have saved myself drawing lines, using a checkered towel, placing pins at 1 cm intervals, and spending tons of time and cursing. 
Thank you so much

I’ve also blocked a few pieces with welding rods, but then I ended up going back to the “pin method.” Somehow I can handle that better. Everyone has to figure out for themselves what works best for them. Basically, the welding rods are a great thing, especially for straight pieces.

Oh, so I guess I’ve been doing it wrong all this time.

Regardless of the type of yarn I use, I’ve been spraying my scarves, shawls, etc. with a spray bottle and blocking them on my ironing board with pins.

So far, all my crochet projects have survived. But I usually use cotton or merino...

@Anton 2412
That’s how I blocked them at first, too. But blocking them while they’re damp or wet gives even better results. Why don’t you give it a try? :-)

Edit: one “result” too many... ;-)

Hi everyone,

Blocking is my favorite topic :-)

The most important tips have already been given...

Just two more things from me:
Soaking: generally yes, but be careful with multicolored projects—they can “bleed.”
Alpaca, in particular, tends to do this, so I only leave such projects in cold water for a maximum of 20 minutes and add a splash of vinegar, which prevents the colors from running.

And then I’d also like to touch on the “blocking board” a bit.
Assuming you have the space, “homemade” boards work best:
cover a board with PVC (or similar rubber flooring) and draw a grid on it.

It takes a bit of effort at first, but it makes the work so much easier.
I already have 4 different blocking boards in various sizes, and I can only say that you can even match their colors to your decor :-)

Yes, the part about bleeding is true—that’s definitely something to keep in mind. I’m sometimes really amazed at how much color the wool still loses. Color-catcher sheets are also supposed to be good at preventing colors from running into each other. I haven’t tried them yet, though. 

The full bath idea is new to me. My care instructions all agree: wash carefully do not leave soaking in water. I like using mohair/silk, but I also don’t leave other knitted pieces sitting in water. So I’ll try this *full bath* sometime with an old shawl
first.
For a blocking surface, I like using one of those roll-up foam mats that people used to have in bathrooms. The advantage is that they have lines and small holes if you need a straight line
and that they’re easier to store in small apartments.

I think everyone does it the way they learned. I give all my shawls a full soak and like to let them sit for an hour or two so the fibers can really absorb the water. Then I gently press them out with towels and block them afterward.