Blocking
Blocking is the process of washing your work and then stretching and/or pinning it to match your desired specifications. Certain fibers might need to be washed with certain water temperatures or washes, so it’s important to find out that information before starting. After washing, you’ll squeeze out the excess water and then block it to your needs.
So for example, if you were to make wool socks you would let them sit in cold water with wool wash for about 20 minutes, and then get rid of the excess water and let them block on special sock blockers to maintain their size and shape.
Or if you were to make a detailed wool lace shawl, you would follow similar washing instructions and then pin the shawl to foam blocks to better display the pattern and stretch the shawl to the size you want.
If your item was made out of a material that did not need to be blocked like this or could be washed normally, you would simply follow the care instructions with that particular fiber.
When you’re done blocking, you’ll want to let your finished piece sit until it’s completely dry before removing it. After that, you can wear it around or store it in an air-tight container. The next time you wash your garment, you’ll need to follow similar steps to maintain the quality of your piece.