What is to be done? Resign myself to fate?
Well. This can be a bit of a problem. Moisture - check. Agitation - also check. Felting - yes.
I tend to have a preference for a looser fit at the underarm, which alleviates some of the agitation issue. Otherwise, I am not sure what else can be done other than knit with non-felting fibers…
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I’m not 100% sure, but I think I’ve read that a tighter gauge under the armpit can reduce felting.
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Spend a lot of time with arms akimbo, maybe!
I’ve read about pads you can sew to the underarms. Sounds depressing, though.
I think deeper armholes is worth trying.
I made my boyfriend a pair of socks once that felted on his feet. I feel your pain.
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I have one sweater in which I put those pads in the underarms. I don’t consider it depressing 
… Mostly I did it because the yarn is silk. 
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I have nothing to add to this discussion, except 1. I love the title of this thread, and 2. I love that I’m not the only one who has fretted about this.
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I have a fuzzy angora/cashmere/wool sweater that it seems inevitable on. I’ve spent more time than I care to imagine fretting over the issue, but then, I do hope no one is spending too much time looking at the armpits…
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Do you think this interesting design would help? Looks like a very loose fit at the underarm. Almost a non-fit, really.
Rhilea
Yes. Especially from the Bunny-B image, it seems that there would be little to no contact with the underarm area, reducing the agitation and moisture factor which leads to felting.
I’m a teacher, so I spend an unusual amount of time waving my arms around over my head. Most of the time I think it’s pretty unnoticeable.
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