Two Sleeves at a Time

What about sleeves? Have you ever worked a pattern for a sweater and tweaked it so it fit you? Well if you did you probably needed to also tweak the sleeves. ( I always tweak sleeves-short arms). The trick is how to make sure that you do exactly the same thing to both sleeves. Even if you write the changes down you will probably want to make some changes just as you are working along. Just write those changes, too, right? 

Well if you are like the rest of us you are working on more than one thing at a time (or seven). Then when you look at those wonderfully clear instructions by the time you get to the next sleeve the directions frequently appear to be ancient Sanskrit. Heaven knows why. It has even happened that both sleeves get frogged and redone. FRUSTRATION!

To avoid that problem work each row on each sleeve simultaneously. I actually think the idea works out more easily in knitting as Theresa is showing you. Everything is on one needle and you don't have to put anything down and switch back and forth. It's a little trickier when you put down one sleeve and do the next. You have to stop some time and come back. Leave yourself sticky notes. Like "sleeve 1 and sleeve 2" right on the work. "This sleeve next and start with row 52 (if you crocheting for a basketball player)." But always think 2 sleeves at a time.

This does have a mental price to pay. We all think: "ahhh the back and front is done; not much more, just the sleeves" Wrong! And when you do 2 sleeves at a time, it takes even longer to get to another finished piece. So be patient. Just delay that feeling of accomplishment a little longer. 2 sleeves that match is one hell of an accomplishment too.