The Assembly Line Cranks Up

I finally made a decision on how to proceed with Wine&Roses:  I am using a seaming technique from The Principles of Knitting by June Hemmons Hiatt.  I can't post a link to the actual instructions and the book is out of print.  I am appalled at how much copies of this book are selling for on Amazon.com  ($225.00 and up).  It is a great book, but not for beginners, and June Hiatt is extremely opinionated, but then, aren't we all?  Still, whenever I am not sure what to do in a given knitting situation, she always provides food for thought, if not an outright solution.

I have not used this particular seaming technique before, but so far, I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT!  The sweater is pretty bulky and the actual guage varies row by row, but the seam is flat and small and quite attractively almost invisible.  The pieces are seamed right-sides together, and sewing up is actually a bit of a challenge because I have to get all those loose ends out of the way and try to detrmine the difference between the actual selvedge stitches and the knots tying the yarns together.  (Yes, Virginia, there are knots).

Here is a picture of me sewing the seam:

As you can see the edge is a tangle of yarns and it is quite difficult to see where I am working, of course my eyesight is not great in the best of circumstances. The good news is that it is equally hard to find the seam once it has been sewn.

Here is the finished seam from the outside:

Can you see the seam?  The stripes on the sweater are horizontal.  The picture is not.

Here's another picture, this time of the inside of the same seam:

As you can see, the ends are still hanging free.

I haven't completely decided what to do about them yet, but the seams look pretty nice, even with the ends still attached.  Montse Stanley, in The Knitters Handbook  recomments knotting the yarns and leaving a short fringe as one of the alternatives seam finishes.  Originally I thought this would be far too bulky in this sweater but I am beginning to revise that opinion.  A short fringe might be quite attractive.  I might just tack the seam and fringe edge down lightly with a little hand sewing just to keep everything under control.  Or I might still work out some other way to deal with the ends.  I still have a lot of seaming ahead so there is plenty of time to make up my mind.

Comments

[may]

Merdel, your knitted fabric is really pretty and gorgeous. I cannot wait to see a photo of you in it. Also, I like Liana's suggestion. It would cut the time by a lot. How clever you are, Liana!

[Liana]

Mardel, This is just fabulously gorgeous! I like your fringe idea. I wonder if on the inside, if you just want to secure your ends without so much bulk (and work) you might use a strip of tricot (like the wider Seams Great) on the top and bottom of your ends, and just triple zigzag up and down the sweater, sewing over just the ends of the yarns? You probably have a REAL plan. Can't wait to see the finished effect!