FINALLY! Next round is being worked ...

FINALLY! Next round is being worked ...
I had found the forum about blocking ...
but thought I had read somewhere
about rolling with a rolling pin...
damp towel...makes the picot open up?
Anyone know of this?

I've never heard of using a rolling pin on tatting. The only way I know of to open up picots after they are tatted is by hand, one by one. But if you are careful about twisting, letting the thread unwind before closing rings and as you tat chains, then most picots won't need opening up.

in reply to Joletta 's post:

Oh yes, Joletta ! I still haven't been able to locate who had uploaded the pic of her doily with rolling pin but she shared her blocking trick and I have used it Successfully eine then !I On small and large projects, on size 10, 20, 40 thread projects.

Lynn's advice is very useful - prevention is better than cure.
But for blocking, here's how :
Soak the piece nicely in water - the core thread should become damp.
Then lay it flat on the kitchen counter I spread it a bit with your hands.
Now roll the rolling pin over the tatting, till some of the water gets squeezed out.
If required, male minor adjustments & check picots with your fingers.
Once satisfied, place it over a towel (for small pieces), or lay a towel over the doily. Then roll the pin over it once more or simply dab with your hands. This step is to soak out more of the water.
You will already see the difference. Repeat with another dry towel if required.
It now takes just a few more minutes for the doily to dry !!!
I now longer use any other method & all my early lethargy towards blocking has vanished.

The explanation is much longer than the actual process ;-D
Try it & post your feedback &/or suggestions, tips.

I'm so glad you posted this, @Muskaan. I've never seen this before. You say this is the only method you use now, so it must be effective. But I've tatted one doily twice that both times required some hard blocking - pinning and tugging, pushing and pinning, pinning and soaking. I seriously doubt that those would have responded to a rolling pin. Every single round had to be vigorously bludgeoned into shape. But you're the one who uses a rolling pin, so I'd like your input about that kind of doily. How flat would you say the project must lie before the rolling pin works properly?

in reply to muskaan's post:

THANK YOU! I will save your instructions and not dread the finishing of my doily! I have pinned some of my small projects and they just don't look very good... So I will "re-finish " them! Again ... Thank you!

in reply to Lynn's post:

Please , let me know how it works for you ... I tat very tightly but my doily is laying pretty flat at this time. I do spend time as I work on it...tugging at rings...wiggling joins flatter...I needle tat too. Could make a difference?

in reply to muskaan's post:

After some thought ...
Would pictures of the process of "rolling pin blocking " be hard to post?
Finishing is a big deal for the beauty of a project....

Hi again :-)
@Lynn, individual differences can always be a factor. And if stitches are tensioned too tightly, it will not leave much room for repositioning. But I still feel, of the 2 methods, rolling pin will give better results because one can apply pressure, even pressure, over the lace.
There was one Spring Doily (by Vinnie) which had mostly chains. The first time I snugged the stitches too close. Blocked with blocking pins . Partially effective. Tatted it again with eve tension & rolled over it. Lay much better.
Will post pics & share here .... one of my many backlogs .

@Joletta, there does seem to be some interest in this method. I will make a pictorial to share. A couple of tatters mentioned that they don't like to roll over lace. Meanwhile why don't you give it a try. If you have any small piece lying around, try it on that.
Last year I made Renulek's Snow Doily in size 40 - about 22" across. After the rolling pin blocking, it became so wonderfully crisp !!! Gifted and appreciated.

Earlier I used to iron. Now nothing :-) My newly bought set of steel blocking pins (in 3 sizes) has been lying idle :-)

Looking forward to your doily ...

in reply to muskaan's post:

oh!
Thank you! I actually have the snow doily by Renulek on my list. I love her good directions as I learn to tat....
I appreciate your efforts to show us this method...I will post pictures of this doily using your rolling method of blocking but have two and half rows to go...

Thank you, @Muskaan. The doily I had so much trouble with didn't seem to be a tension issue. I think it was the construction itself, as I've tatted bigger things that behaved beautifully. I'll have a go with the rolling pin on my snowflakes, see how that works. You mentioned having ironed projects before. What would you identify as the main difference in result?

I saw at least a version of the discussion of using a rolling pin in blocking. I tried the method for the first time with the Blue Floret earrings I just finished. I positioned the piece to be blocked on a white terry cloth towel and folded the towel over the item, then rolled it somewhat gently. After this initial rolling, I checked the results, made minor adjustments and rolled it again with more "confidence". It worked well. I tried it again with a mini cross. With both earrings and the cross, I was pleased with the results and I plan to use the method again. Thanks to whoever it was to originally posted the suggestion!

Dear muskaan: I so need to try this method of the rolling pin. Thanks for your tips.

For the longest time, and I don't remember when or how I started, I used Aleene's fabric stiffener for all my blocking. It works great for me! one small bottle of concentrated formula lasts me for a long time, and I block a lot of items. I like flexibility in all my projects, so I mix 2 tablespoons of the concentrated stiffener in one cup of water, mix it all in a spray bottle, and spray directly on my items, because it gets to the core thread. Then, pass items trough paper towel, then check on all picots, rings and chains one by one by hand, and finally let dry on white paper under a fan if I need fast dry...ufff! just got tired by describing the process!
A while ago I tried my steamer on my Glass mat by MK . I placed a piece of cotton fabric on it, and I was very surprised at how fast it got flat, and all picots looked great. The only things is that it doesn't have the hold that the stiffener provides.
Today for the first time I soaked in soapy water my square motif done in cro-tat, but I'm not sure I'm pleased with the results...
Hmmm! need to dig more into this subject, and find out more info about different methods of blocking...
good times!
Need to

I think it might have been one of my project pictures that sparked some rolling pin blocking discussion. (Here: )

I don't think it's really effective on misbehaving picots, since those lie deeper than the main stitches. But it makes it so much easier to flatten big pieces. Like dough!

Ignes. Thanks for sharing! what's in the bottle? Is it a solution to hold the shape?

Oh, SO SO much, @Ignes ! I've been looking for this image & source, but with a slow server I just couldn't find it.
This is where I first saw & read & am completely committed to it. But you mention blocking the piece first, then rolling only to remove excess water. Do you block with pins , or just shape with hands/fingers?
Also, would it be fine by you if I made a pictorial & posted it on my blog & here (there has been some interest on blogs too)? If yes, what name should I credit you by ? Any advice/tips is also welcome .

@Lynn, like @Lmieczko, I use a Damp muslin cloth over tatting & iron over it. This way I can use a hotter setting. It works well. The difference is that simple ironing will lay it flat, but not stiffen it (as already pointed out by Laura). Rolling pin stiffens it or at least makes it crispy. I guess it will last longer too.
Lynn, if you remember pics of my earlier projects & the ones I take now, you may see the difference.

I am not too picky about each picot being open, etc. Usually they are fine & the odd one can be adjusted with fingers. The process can be repeated as spot treatment, too.
Another thing I remembered --- I use the rolling pin on the back side of lace.

Here's a recent project on which rolling pin worked :
See the amount of coiling ? I had to really pull at the rings after completion. But without using any blocking pins, only dunking in water & rolling over it gave me a good heart :-) And the rings were layered here !

I'm a convert for sure ! Thanks again Ignes

@Lmieczko The stuff in the spray-bottle is hairgel. "Concrete gel" i.e. super strong. It's my go-to blocking help, after just drying fast. I wouldn't use it on articles that should be worn, but it keeps my motifs and smaller doilies nicely stiff. The more gel, the stiffer. On the big doily in the picture I just used a little bit, per surface area, so it stayed quite soft.

@muskaan I don't really have a blocking board and I've only once taken the time to create one out of cloth and cardboard. That was a crocheted doily, and years ago. So no pins for me! For my tatting mostly I just soak it in soapy water, rinse, and then pull into shape on a flat surface, like the kitchen counter top in that picture. I haven't used the rolling pin much on small pieces, but for this big doily it really helped. With small things you can hold all the points and stretch equally in all directions, but for a big item that just doesn't work. Seems to me a rolling pin is totally made for such pressure distribution though. I did flatten it first a bit, made sure no parts of it were folded, to avoid creasing. Then I put a towel over the doily and rolled it out from the centre, as you would a piece of dough. Works like a charm, and it gets a lot of moisture out already, which speeds up the drying.
Seems to me you've got more experience with this method than me already. Great that it has made things easier for you!
If you want to make a pictorial that's totally okay with me. I've gotten by far the biggest chunk of my tatting knowledge and tons of great tips from various places online, and inspiring more such tips to help out others is super awesome. If you want to take the time to make such a tutorial, go for it! And thanks! If you want to credit me, just Ignes is fine. I'm Ignes in all craft related places I frequent.

Interesting! I shall certainly trying a rollingpin on my next tatted piece. I usually iron my tatting with a steam iron, after covering it with muslin, as muskaan describes.

Thank you Ignes and Muskaan for helping with these wonderful tips.
So when use the roll pin on a large item, and you are ready to roll after soaking in water...Do you use cloth on bottom and top of the tatted piece, or only on the top? I imagine that the surface below the tatted piece would have to be somehow slippery so when you roll on the tatted piece, all rings, chains, and picot could stretch out easily without catching on anything, right?

in reply to Lmieczko's post:

Hi Laura :-)
My first rolling is always on the counter, without any towel. Once the piece takes shape, that's when I place kitchen towel over the large project, Or place a small project between folds of a towel.
Sometimes one may have to repeat with a 2nd dry towel in case of large items.

in reply to Ignes's post:

Thanks a heap Ignes :-) This morning I finally took pics , albeit of a small snowflake , & will upload the pictorial in a few days. It should give an idea of how to apply the same to larger items.
Will post link here when done.

in reply to muskaan's post:

Thank muskaan, I'll try this on my next project.

Argh - I don't have a rolling pin! Now I want to go and buy one...

in reply to GraceT's post:

I've not tried this with tatting... but in my old student place we didn't have a rolling pin either. For some baking escapades I have successfully used a cleaned, straight type wine bottle, empty... It's not as comfortable for your hands as a rolling pin though.

I think I'll hold off on the rolling pin for now. I really ought to use my pins and blocking board...