handmade by stefanie

A few weeks ago, I shared a post about blocking handmade gifts ; I thought I'd revisit the topic by sharing a few of my favorite time-saving tools to block finished projects with stellar results every time! This is by no means an exhaustive list of every useful item to have on hand - rather, it's a collection of my favorite blocking tools at the moment. Sock Blockers: Every now and again, I'm asked if it's necessary to invest in a pair of sock blockers. While they aren't exactly essential, it's undeniable that they make finished socks look extra-amazing (more about that here ). Not only do I use sock blockers on all of my hand knit socks for gifting, I also use them on my own every time I wash them!  Blocking Mats : It was years (as in, at least 10) before I got a set of blocking mats. I always figured that using towels and/or clean cardboard was every bit as good as a blocking mat, and couldn't justify the expense. Then, as I started to do more and ...

Though I failed to finish my Holla Knits KAL project for last month's event, I am  pleased to say that I made some major progress on the Admiralty pillow - the second pillow piece is done! Blocking it gave me an opportunity to test out a new product from Knitter's Pride which I had seen at TNNA earlier this year and was anxiously awaiting: These new Knit Blockers are the most ingenious blocking tool I think I've ever come across. Having spent a good 15-20 minutes blocking the first pillow side with a ton of T-pins, I found myself wondering where the Knit Blockers had been all my life....because using them to block the second side took UNDER FIVE MINUTES! Needless to say, I am incredibly excited to bust them out whenever I happen to finish the Lory Shawl . I was really hoping this project would be done before the Wisconsin Sheep & Wool Festival this coming weekend, but I am not sure that's a reasonable expectation at this point. However, I am reeeeeaaallly ...