The Yarn Stash

Nothing is more frustrating than casting on 150 long-tail stitches and running out of tail yarn - or perhaps having a severe excess of tail! While there are many ways to calculate the length of the tail to get the right number of stitches on your needles and an appropriate length of tail, there's one quick workaround that requires no extra tools other than your knitting needle.

Start by getting the amount of tail you want leftover plus an inch or three extra. From that point on, start wrapping your yarn around the needle. One wrap for every stitch you want to cast on. When you get to your last wrap, it doesn't hurt to do a couple of wraps extra just in case.

Mark, pinch or simply remember the position of your very last wrap and make a slip knot in this spot. The tail you have left right now will be enough to cast on all your stitches and leave you with a long enough and short enough tail to avoid the usual Long-Tail frustrations! You may need to practice this a few times to get a feel for how close you are to your desired results, but once you know the margin of error in your wrapping, you can adjust accordingly. Either way it sure beats a lot of measuring and calculating!