Long Tail Cast On - How much????

Wrap your needle 1/4 of 244, unwrap needle, measure once the length, then measure once the entire length, leave another 3" to be sure you have enough. Frances

The general rule I've heard is make the tail three times the length of the final width to be cast on. So, if the final width of your cast on is 10 inches, you need a tail

30 inches long. How many stitches to the inch is your tension? This should enable you to work out the width of your piece and thereby the length of your tail.

VP

I think it's much faster than two needle methods. I also like the finish better - it's easier for me to get a neat, even appearance.

VP

Who needs any books or computers with VP and Wooly around the place. :)

Luv u both, Dennis & Gail

Another way that works for me (sometimes) is 1/2" for each stitch plus a few inches. 244 sts is 122 inches or about 3.5 yards. Or, since there's so many stitches, you can use the end of another skein - knot both ends together, then begin the CO using one skein for the thumb strand and the other skein (which you'll do the first row with) for the finger strand.

sue

Try using the end of another ball of yarn to do one half of your long tail cast on. you might have 2 ends to weave in, but it's so much less frustrating than getting to the last 10 stitches of your cast on and finding there's not enough yarn left! there is (or rather have been on several occasions!) a reason why I know this

HTH Love & higs Christine

PS I've just cast on a wrap in Tunisian crochet using a lovely new rosewood hook I just bought. The yarn's Twilley's Freedom Spirit, and when I decide what stitch I'm going to use it should be lovely. How's your Tunisian crochet going?

Really, really long? Seriously, though, I wrap once around the needle for every stitch, and add about another 6 inches. That seems to work, even though it is a pain sometimes.

Higs, Katherine

Heh, I haven't used this cast-on, and after watching the women in our knitting group and reading the comments here, I don't think I'll even bother. It sounds like a PITA.(grin). But, different strokes for diff folks.

Shelagh

I rarely use any other cast on. I like the edge it gives, and it's stretchy enough to be stretchy (if you see what I mean) and firm enough not to "undulate". But I guess it's horses for courses, as with so many other things in yarncraft

Love & higs Christine

I like it - it's only a pain if you're casting on more than about 150 stitches...

sue

What cast on do you use, Shelagh?

Higs, Katherine

The "official" rule of thumb, which I have seen in more than one knitting book and in a book of engineering and machining and more standards, is "an inch a stitch."

Experience has taught me that this works for worsted yarn, with a cast- on count of 20 to 150 stitches. But then, I do not measure the inches exactly, just holding the yarn up to my person, extended fingertips to just past the opposite shoulder for a yard. And if I rip out because I didn't have enough and start over with just enough more yarn? I always have a long bit left over!

Cece

Usually a cable cast on.

Shelagh

Ah, yes, that is a good one. For years, the only one I used was a knitted cast on. That eliminated the need for measuring as well.

Higs, Katherine

------------- Wow, I hadn't realized all the types of cast-on. I just knew of two and I liked the looks of the long-tail cast on the best of those two choices.

I understand that, according to the Lion Brand website, that there are

5 cast-ons that they mention.

the single-stitch cast-on, the long-tail cast-on, the cable cast-on, the double-knitted cast-on and the crochet edge cast-on.

As always, there is so much to learn and I guess that is why knitting is so cool, eh?

Padishar Creel

There's a blog site which lists 30 some ways of casting on -

a reference to sites where you can learn some of them - of them are variations, but there's a reason to use different ones for different effects.She also has an entry on different bind offs too -

-

and a reference to sites where you can learn some of them- Some of them are variations, but there's a reason to use different ones> for different effects.> She also has an entry on different bind offs too-> sue- Hide quoted text ->

30!!!!! Wow so much to learn so little time...thanks for the links...

Padishar Creel