How to block and finish needlepoint

Why needlepoint ends up crooked

Every tent stitch slants the same way, and every one of them pulls the canvas a tiny bit in that direction. Multiply that by a few thousand and a square canvas turns into a parallelogram. Continental stitch pulls the hardest. Basketweave pulls the least, which is one of the best reasons to learn it, and the guide to needlepoint stitches shows how.

You'll almost always need to block at the end. Blocking means dampening the canvas, pinning it square and letting it dry that way. It works on any needlepoint, whether it started as a painted canvas or a chart on blank mesh like the ones in needlepoint vs cross stitch.

Less to fix later

Most of the distortion happens while you stitch, so the cheapest blocking is the one you avoid needing.

Stretcher bars are wooden bars that slot together into a frame. A canvas tacked onto them stays taut on all four sides, and a taut canvas can't pucker or drift out of shape as easily. One needlepoint shop owner mounts hers like this: a tack at the center of the top, then the center of the bottom, then the center of each side, pulling the canvas tight each time. Then the corners, then halfway between each corner and center, and on until the tacks are no more than 1 inch apart. Painted canvases usually come with about 2 inches of blank canvas around the design, and she makes sure no more than 1/4 inch of canvas hangs past the outer edges of the bars.

Tension is the other half. Stitches pulled too tight make the canvas bunch up around them. If you spot a puckered patch, ease the stitches looser with the tip of your needle. Even tension all the way through gives a smoother, flatter piece.

Leaving the background until last helps too, if the design allows it.

Before you get anything wet

Test your threads

Wet blocking and steam blocking both use water, so check that nothing will bleed first. One needlepoint shop suggests this simple test:

1. Wet a white paper towel with warm water.
2. Lay a piece of thread at least 2 inches long on it, fold the towel over and press down.
3. Wait at least 10 minutes, then look at the towel.

Any color on the towel means the thread isn't colorfast. Test every thread you used, since results can vary from one thread to the next and even between dye lots of the same color. If something bleeds, or you can't test it because you've run out, don't wet block or steam block the piece, and tell your finisher before they start.

Leave the margin alone

Don't trim the bare canvas around your stitching yet. That margin is where the pins go. When you start a new piece, leave about 2 inches of blank canvas on every side, and bind the raw edges with masking tape so they don't fray while you work.

Wet blocking, step by step

This is DMC's method. You need a blocking board with a printed grid, T-pins that won't rust, a spray bottle and a clean towel.

1. Spray the whole canvas with warm water. You want it damp, not soaked.
2. Leave it for about 5 minutes so the fibers relax, then pat off the excess with the towel.
3. Pull the damp canvas gently by the upper left and lower right corners, against the lean, to bring it roughly square. Lay it on the board face down if it's all flat stitching like tent stitch, or face up if it has raised stitches such as rice or French knots.
4. Pin the center of the top margin. Stretch the canvas downward, keeping the vertical canvas threads lined up with the grid, and pin the center of the bottom margin. Do the same for the two sides, keeping the horizontal threads at right angles to the vertical ones.
5. Work outward from those four center pins, adding pins about every 3/4 inch (2 cm). Add a few at a time on all four sides rather than finishing one side first, so the pull stays even.
6. Mist the canvas lightly again.
7. Let it dry at room temperature, out of direct sun. It can take several days, longer when the air is humid. Don't take the pins out until it's bone dry.

If it still leans when you unpin it, do it again. Some canvases need several rounds. It isn't a sign you did anything wrong.

Steam blocking for small fixes

If you worked the piece on a frame or stretcher bars and it only needs a nudge, steam may be enough. Lay the needlepoint face down on an ironing board or a folded towel. Set the iron to steam and hold it about 1/4 inch above the canvas, not touching it, until the canvas is warm and damp. Then pin or tack it into shape on a board and let it cool and dry. Steam is still water, so the colorfastness test applies here too.

What kind of finish

Finishing is the step that turns a stitched canvas into a thing: a pillow, an ornament, a belt, a framed picture. Many stitchers hand this to a professional finisher, and a local needlepoint shop is a good place to ask for one. When you hand it over, mention any thread that failed the bleed test, and ask which blocking method they use. Whoever does the finishing, a few extra rows of stitching make the job much easier.

Binding stitch for small pieces

The edges of a belt, a key fob or a coaster get rubbed every day. Binding stitch covers them. You work it only after everything else is stitched: fold the blank canvas to the back so the top row of stitching sits right on the fold, then work the binding stitch over the fold, two canvas threads deep, so the edge is wrapped in yarn instead of left as bare canvas. Using your background yarn keeps the edge from drawing attention. It reads more complicated than it is, so try a few inches on a scrap of canvas first.

Extra rows

Work the extra rows in tent stitch even if the background is in a decorative stitch. If you chart your own designs, put those rows into the chart from the start. In Craft Studio's needlepoint editor that just means a slightly bigger grid.

Making a pillow yourself

A simple knife-edge pillow is within reach of anyone with a sewing machine.

• Block the piece first and let it dry completely.
• Trim the canvas to leave about 1 inch (2.5 cm) all around the stitching.
• Place the backing fabric and the needlepoint right sides together and sew right up against the last row of stitches, so no bare canvas shows on the front.
• Leave a gap along one side. Trim the corners diagonally so they aren't bulky, turn it right side out, insert the pillow form and close the gap by hand.

Framing

For a framed piece, the needlepoint is stretched over a board and fitted into the frame. Conservation advice for textiles is to avoid glue, adhesive tape, adhesive-coated boards, sprays, staples and tacks, and if you use glass, to keep it off the stitching with spacers. Hang it out of direct sunlight. The same principles apply to cross stitch, and the cross stitch framing guide goes through mounting and glazing in detail.

Cleaning it later

Finished needlepoint mostly needs dusting with a soft brush. For a spot, the shop behind the bleed test suggests dabbing club soda on with a cotton swab and blotting with a clean white cloth, repeating as needed. Don't rub or scrub, which can loosen threads or make colors run, and test a hidden spot first if you don't know whether your threads are colorfast.