My best guess is for the first "shape shoulders", you cast off (bind off) 8 stitches the beginning of each of the next four rows, which would mean that they were coming off both sides leaving 31 stitches in the middle.

The second "shape shoulder" has a couple ** after it. Those instructions appear to me to apply to only one side, and you are casting off only on every other row which would make that all on the same side.

Is there a reference to the ** that says something like do the same thing to the other side? Do they show a pic of the shape of the parts in the pattern?

-Babka

It sounds like you are doing two sections of a sweater. Would this be the front and back? Or each side of a front or back? We need to see more of the directions.

To me it sounds like the first one is for the back and you are decreasing from both sides, so you decrease on the left side on the first row. the right on the next row and repeat once.

The next one is for the fronts--your vest must have buttons or zipper down the front. You decrease on the sleeve side but not the front, so you only decrease on the alternate rows so all decreases are only on the sleeve side.

If you have 2 different views one with the divided--zipper or buttons-- front and one that is in one piece, you use the first for the one piece and the second for the divided one