Blocking is the quiet art of persuading a finished piece to be its best self. You soak it in lukewarm water with a drop of wool wash, press out the moisture in a towel, and pin it to a board in the shape you would like it to keep. Then you leave it alone. This is the hard part. You must walk away.
A well blocked piece will hold its form for years, and every stitch will lie flat and calm. I block most of my work at the end of the week and, by Sunday, the boards in the back room are covered with little pinned shapes, drying like specimens. I often visit them in the evening. They look so pleased. It is such a pity, really, that they cannot stay that way.
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