The neckline of a sweater is a focal point because it is near the face. A badly worked neck band or neck edge spoils the whole garment.

The way the edges of the neck have been worked (see here) is an important part of the how the neckline will eventually look. If the shaping has been worked using the edge stitches, the shaping will be bumpy, making it hard to judge where to pick up the stitches for a neckband [pic 1].

1: The pick up row will look crooked, because the stitches may be crammed into the wrong places, and missed stitches can show up as holes.

Poking stitches into the edge of a neck, wherever they can be fitted, makes it hard to get a good result. The pick-up row might show holes, or stitches may be crammed in to the wrong places. This will make the band wavy [pic 2,3].

   
2: (left) An ugly edge because there is no obvious place to pick up consecutive stitches.
3: (right) Holes show clearly at the pick-up edge.

Shaping that has been worked one or two stitches in from an edge will have a clear line to follow when picking up stitches for the neck band, or when adding a collar or any neck trim [pic 4,5].

4: When all shapings have been knitted two stitches in from an edge, it’s very easy to see where consecutive pick up stitches can be placed.

5: The pick up row of this neckband has no holes, no jagged lines, just a neat edge.

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