Sweater sleeve question

#1

I have made a sweater before where I seamed the front and back first at the shoulders, then added the sleeves (unseamed) at the shoulder, then seamed up the sleeve from the wrist and down the side of the sweater to the waist.

The one (a cardigan) I am working on now, has me seaming the shoulders and sides and the sleeves and then inseting the sleeves into the holes and seaming them into the sweater.

Is this easy to do? It seems that the other way is easier then putting a sleeve into a hole essentially and matching it up that way. Am I just making it seem harder?

I haven’t gotten to this part yet, just finishing up the first sleeve. But thought I would ask before I got to it. Thanks!

-Alison

#2

Alison–

In most cases, you can sew sleeve and side seams at the same time, the way you did on your first sweater. As you suspect, it’s a lot more fiddly to try to get a tubular sleeve into a round armhole. (’:shock:’)

There are times when the second way may be better: for instance, if you’re doing a fancy sleeve with puffs or gathers, or have an unusually shaped sleeve cap. If your sleeves and armholes are “normal,” the first way should work just fine.

The more you knit the more you realize that directions aren’t gospel. If you know a better way to get the same (or better) results, go with it.