Working both shoulders at the same time?

Hello, i am a beginner knitter and i am attempting to knit my first sweater. I managed to follow all of the instructions so far, but this part is a little confusing to me:

Shape shoulder and neck:
Count 24 (27, 27, 29, 31, 34) sts from one side, place a marker, count next 8 (8, 10, 10, 10, 12) sts and place a second marker. There are 24 (27, 27, 29, 31, 34) sts remaining to the other side.
Row 8 (RS): K1 to first marker for right shoulder. Remove marker, join the 2nd ball of yarn and bind off 8 (8, 10, 10, 10, 12) sts; removing the 2nd marker for back neck. K1 to end of row for left shoulder.
You will now work on both shoulders AT THE SAME TIME with two separated balls of yarn.
Row 9: On left shoulder, P1 in all sts. On right shoulder, cast off first 3 (4, 3, 4, 4, 4) sts, P1 in remaining sts.
Row 10: On right shoulder, K1 in all sts. On left shoulder, cast off the first 3 (4, 3, 4, 4, 4) sts, K1 to end of row. Repeat last Row 9 and Row 10 once more.
There are 18 (19, 21, 21, 23, 26) sts on each shoulder.

Maybe it’s really self explanatory but i just really can’t seem to wrap my head around it. How do i work on both shoulders at the same time??

Welcome to the forum!
You can work both shoulders at the same time using 2 balls of yarn or 2 ends of yarn. Place the markers as given for your size. For the smallest size there will be 24 sts for each shoulder and 8sts in the center neck.
For the smallest size, knit 24sts, attach a second end of yarn and bind off the center 8sts. To do this you’ll have to knit one more stitch on the other side of the second marker but that’s ok. You’ll have one stitch on the right needle after the bind off and 23 sts for the second shoulder (24sts total there). Finish knitting to the end of the row.
Now you’ll be working across one shoulder, dropping the yarn attached to shoulder 2, picking up the yarn attached to shoulder 1 and following the directions for that shoulder. So purl across shoulder 2, drop the yarn, pick up the yarn attached to shoulder 1 and cast off 3sts. Purl to the end of the row and turn.
Knit across shoulder 1, drop the yarn, pick up the yarn attached to shoulder 2 and cast off 3sts, then knit to the end of the row.
Repeat these last 2 rows once more.

It seems like a lot going on at once but it’s actually easier to work both shoulders at the same time. If you find it too confusing, you can always work one shoulder, then the second.

Good for you for venturing into sweater knitting. It all gets easier the more different patterns you do.
What is the name of your pattern and which size are you making?

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As well as salmonmac’s great description, this is also easier to understand when it is on the needles and you begin to follow the instructions. If I have 2 yarn balls I would choose to work both shoulders at once. If I only had one yarn ball I would work one shoulder at a time.

I usually like to work 2 sleeves at the same time too although it’s not always possible.

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Thank you for taking the time to explain! I’m knitting Sweater No. 15 by Daisy & Peace in the size S (so second smallest one)


Good choice and very nice! See how it goes and come back if you have any questions. We love to see photos of finished projects.

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totally, thank you so much for your help!

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