Not all crochet is designed to be flat. One of the beautiful aspects of this craft is that with it you can create three-dimensional designs, whether your creation is as simple as a hat or as complex as a decorative, three-dimensional Lilliputian village that you work in many pieces.
Many three-dimensional designs need to be coaxed and shaped after you finish the actual crocheting, however. Most patterns include detailed instructions on how to finish and shape your work. If yours doesn't, you can wet block your project.
One change to the standard wet-blocking procedure in this case is that instead of pinning your design out flat, you mold it over the appropriate shape and pin down the edges so it can dry that way.
Here are some of the supplies you should have on hand when you're shaping a three-dimensional design:- A kitchen bowl: Pick one in an appropriate size (comparable to the finished design measurements) for wet blocking a hat or shaping a doily into a decorative bowl.
- Paper cups: Shape cotton-thread Christmas ornaments, such as bells, with paper cups.
- Plastic wrap: Probably the most useful tool, plastic wrap can stuff, prop up, and shape many three-dimensional designs.
- Preformed foam shapes: Available in most craft stores, foam shapes, such as cones, can shape the bodies for objects such as crocheted Christmas tree toppers.
