April 13, 2003

Two or three aspirin oughta do it. Yep.

Seam this for me and I'll give you chocolates.

Finally got off my lazy bum and am halfway through seaming my son's raglan sweater. After spending a somewhat hellish time sewing the sleeves to the body of the garment, which were - I must point out again - knit from side to side and shaped via short rows and knitting on stitches because we all like to be fancy in our knitting from time to time, I am convinced that the knitted objects that have provided me with the most hours of fun-filled sewing are:

1) The skinny-legged toy ostrich.
2) The pocket of my son's tweedy jacket.
3) The sleeves of my son's raglan sweater.

Admittedly, the actual knitting of the sleeves was fun. But the short row shaping and increasing stitches at the end of rows via a cast-on method on the sleeves has made for a funky seam. Further, this particular raglan armhole is not a straight diagonal line like most other raglans; it's a CURVE. On the body of the sweater, the raglan starts out as a straight line up to the chest area, and then it curves inward until it reaches the neckline. Obviously, the sleeves curve in a similar manner to fit the body of the sweater. All this makes, I'm sure, for a very nicely-fitted garment. It also makes for pain in the ass seaming for someone who's obsessed about impeccable finishing. And aren't I the little whiner today? Send aspirin.

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7 comments to this entry:

sounds like a raglan nightmare -- but it couldn't be in better hands!! :) as i am nearing the finish line on orangina, i am starting to have trepidation about seaming also... all those thick'n'thin alterations are going to be a big pain in the butt when sewing pieces together!

[carolyn on 14 apr 03 @ 01:09 am]

oh, you poor thing. luckily, I seem to go so darn slowly on my projects, that by the time I get to the seaming, I am relieved. heh

[kismet on 14 apr 03 @ 08:50 am]

I won't send asprin, I think a glass of wine would be more appropriate! I'm sure the pain will be worth it when you look at him wearing it and go "yep - that looks fab!"

[kerrie on 14 apr 03 @ 09:52 am]

So, what stitch are you using for all this seaming? I use backstitch for everything, because it's the only one I know, but I guess there are much better alternatives. And it looks like you are doing something like a mattress stitch, but I can't really tell from the picture...

[marrije on 14 apr 03 @ 11:34 am]

Perhaps knitting another raglan in pieces might not be on your knitting agenda for awhile? Good luck with an unamusing task...

[claudia on 14 apr 03 @ 03:00 pm]

Thanks for the encouraging words good seaming vibes! Just what I need to get this finished once and for all :-) Marrije, I used mattress stitch to sew the sleeves to the body of the sweater and to join the side seams, and I'll be using backstitch to join the sleeve seams. (Yep, halfway there :-))

[Becky on 14 apr 03 @ 09:46 pm]

Grief. That would indeed be headachy. Mattress stitching means you're not able to pin before sewing, right? Or baste. I think that's the English word for quickly stitching together with that thick white thread my mama tried to teach me to use before sewing on the machine. Ouch. Big round of applause for you for doing it anyway, and also to your standards!

[marrije on 15 apr 03 @ 05:46 pm]

April 13, 2003

Two or three aspirin oughta do it. Yep.

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