How do you fold cardigans nicely without buttoning?

zaq

Sun, Jan 14 2024, 12:00 am

Nicely for whom? For display in a store, to pack in a suitcase or to put in a drawer?

Grab the center back of the neck and put the two shoulder seams together so that the sweater is folded backwards along its center line. You'll have the two sleeves one next to the other on the right and the two front edges next to each other on the left, or vice versa. Lay the sweater on a table so the sleeves are one on top of the other. Straighten everything out so the sleeves line up one atop the other and the front edges line up one atop the other. Grab the two sleeves together and fold them over towards the front so that they lie on top of the rest of the sweater. Then fold the bottom edge of the sweater, together with the sleeves, up towards the neck. Flip over and you're done. Why do you think this is messy?
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Unless you're talking about those asymmetric cardigans that look like an F in Home Ec, the ones with front panels that are vaguely triangular and hang like limp flags on a windless day? Do those even have buttons? Fold them the same way: shoulder seams together, sleeves together, lay flat on a table. Spread the triangle (?) flaps out, one atop the other. Hold them together and fold towards the opposite side. Fan-fold back and forth as many times as necessary to make them just as wide as the back of the sweater. Fold the sleeves in and proceed as above.

The idea is to make everything as close to rectangular as possible, no matter how many layers you have to work with.

amother

Sun, Jan 14 2024, 10:28 am

zaq wrote:

I do this method folding front ward along the center and then sleeves on top and folding but it doesn't look so nice. Am I doing it wrong.

zaq

Sun, Jan 14 2024, 10:53 am

amother OP wrote:

I do this method folding front ward along the center and then sleeves on top and folding but it doesn't look so nice. Am I doing it wrong.

I wouldn't know, can't picture what it looks like. Can you send a picture? I wouldn't fold frontwards along the center, but backwards. That keeps the fabric from bunching up inside.

Maybe your standards are unrealistically high? Maybe you expect it to look like a Macy's display or an ad in Vogue? Maybe, if you're that troubled, you should take the time to button the buttons and fold the sweater in thirds from the center?

ShishKabob

Sun, Jan 14 2024, 11:22 am

A good way to do this is to take a hard cardboard, the ones that come with the shirts from the cleaners that are folded. Use this as your template. You'll have to close every second button for this. Put the cardigan button side down, put the cardboard on top of it so the collar hole is aligned with the center of the paper. Fold the side of the sweater together with the sleeve inwards till it reaches the side of the cardboard, then fold the sleeves as well and then do the same thing to the other side, pull up the bottom part of the sweater over the sleeves, also folding the sleeves together with it. Now turn it over and remove the cardboard. If you do all of them like that it'll look uniform. I hope I explained this well.