There are many ways to make side edges of our projects nice and neat. Some of them are decorative, others are more subtle, but very few methods form edges that are easy to seam.
The stockinette selvedges method is one of those rarities. It gives us edges that are easy to join in a tidy seam that looks great on the right side of the work and does not have too much bulk. In fact, there is a way to join these edges with almost no bulk at all.
And the last but not least feature of this wonderful method – it is amazingly simple.
Intrigued? Let’s see how it works step by step.
To learn from a video tutorial:
STEP 1
To make these selvedges, add two stitches to the number of stitches that you cast on. One of these stitches will form the right-hand side edge of the fabric. The other one will take care of the left-hand side.
STEP 2
In every right-side row, knit the first and the last stitches of the row.
2.1. Start by knitting the first stitch.
2.2. Then work in the main pattern of your project until you get to the last stitch of the row.
2.3. Finally, knit the last stitch.
If your project doesn’t have a right and a wrong side, work this step in every odd-numbered row.
STEP 3
In every wrong-side row, purl the first and the last stitches of the row.
3.1. Start by purling the first stitch.
3.2. Work in the main stitch pattern to the last stitch of the row.
3.3. Purl the last stitch.
If you add these selvedges to a reversible project, work this step in every even-numbered row.
Repeat steps 2 and 3 until this piece of your project is finished. As you work more and more rows, you will see that the edges look like narrow stripes of stockinette stitch.
They don’t look like much, but don’t let the appearance and a slight curl to the wrong side of the fabric fool you. When the time comes to seam them, these selvedges really shine.
Because we work each edge stitch in every row, the edges are as dense as the rest of the fabric. There are no loose stitches and holes that we get when we use slip-stitch selvedge methods.
This consistent texture offers us not one but two ways to seam the edges.
THE FIRST OPTION
The first option is to run the seam between the edge stitch and the stitch next to it.
This way will form a join that is almost invisible on the right side of the project. With the edge stitches tucked inside the seam, the main stitch pattern on one knitted piece will flow into the main stitch pattern on the other knitted piece.
THE SECOND OPTION
But if you don’t mind sacrificing some of the invisibility to make the seam less bulky, run the seam through the centre on the edge stitches.
Instead of picking up horizontal strands between the first and the second stitches from the edge, pick the horizontal strands that form the top part of the edge stitches.
As you see, this approach forms a chain of stitches that marks the placement of the seam, but it also makes the seam half as bulky as the seam formed by the first option.
To join my swatches, I used the regular mattress stitch, but these edges work equally well for any seaming method – an alternative to mattress stitch described over here, backstitch, running stitch, or any other way to put knitted pieces together.
SAVE IT FOR LATER:
This and 26 other in-depth tutorials are part of Knitting Collection #9.