Just a quick post today, with a really awkward photo.  Because that’s how I roll.

When you do a long-tail cast-on, like this, sometimes it’s yard to figure out how long to make your tail.  If the tail is too long, you end up wasting yarn.  If the tail is too short, you have to rip out your cast-on, and try again (which is a very inauspicious way to start a project).

So, here’s my rule of thumb:  Estimate the length of your finished knit object, and multiply that by four.  So, for example, imagine you’re making a wash cloth.  You want the wash cloth to be 9 inches across.  So, you multiply 9 inches x4, to get 36 inches.  So, you want a 36 inch tail for your long-tail cast-on.  Easy!

Or, if you want to do it the slacker way (which I totally do), just estimate.  If I’m making a hat, I’ll just wrap the yarn around my head a few times.

Here’s the awkward picture:

You’re welcome.