Step 1. Beginning

• Choose a thinner sized needle than what was used to knit the sweater with.

• Choose which side of the sweater you would like the bulk of the seam to be knitted; ie: when joining fronts and backs, choose the back.

• Insert your needle through the back to the front for a back side seam.

• Make a loop with a new piece of yarn (you will need quite a lot so use yarn from a skein) slip the loop over and pull loop through onto the needle.

Step 2. Picking up Stitches

• Look at the back and front each time you insert the needle to make sure that the seam is being made exactly where you want it.

• After inserting the needle at the next point for the next stitch wind yarn around needle and pull through making a new stitch

• Continue doing so untill the seam has been closed and all the stitches are on the needle.

• Start and end each seam as close to the edges as possible.

• Do not make too large a gap between each stitch.

Step 3. Binding Off

• Once you have completed Step 1 by picking up all stitches and finished off as close to the edge as possible, turn work, bring yarn over edge, pick up second needle to start closing off the seam by knitting the first stitch as normal.

• Begin knitting and casting off as you usually would, keep the stitches fairly loose.

Step 3. Continued

• As you knit each stitch make the knitted loop quite long so that when you bind if off it is loose but not bulging.

• Check your tension as you move along the seam to complete. Stretch the work out  a little to make sure the seam is lying flat.

Step 4. Tying Off

• As with the finishing off of a standard bind off, cut the yarn and pull through the last stitch.

• You will have one thread end on the back and one thread end on the front, both pieces of yarn at the same end of the seam, tie together over the edge of the seam.

Armhole Seaming

• Use the 4 needle circular method to attach the sleeves to the body using same instructions as above.

• First tack sleeve underarm to body underarm, also tack centre of sleeve head to shoulder seam

• Keep the armhole seam on the inside of the sleeve instead of on the body side.

• Check that the correct sides of work ahave been tacked together, ie; outside of sleeve to outside of body!

Final Tips

This type of seaming is a BONUS if you are unhappy with the final result (ie: if your patterned edges are not lining up properly as intentionally knitted) then simply undo the last stitch and pull out in a JIFFY and restart again. It only takes a couple of minutes to undo versus a darning needle seam.

If you are closing up a seam on a particularly bulky garment substitue the yarn with a lighter yarn.

Step 1. Handy Tip

• Sometimes, and when it is difficult to get your needle through the work or difficult to pull the yarn through the work with the needle, use a darning needle with a large eye by doubling the yarn being used through the eye and poking the needle through the work, pull it out the other side and slip off the darning needle leaving a loop to put over the knitting needle, stitch done!