How to Work the Long Tail Cast On: A Step-by-Step Guide for Knitters
March 24, 2025
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April 7, 2025Quick Tip: Never Run Out of Yarn While Casting On
Originally published on March 27, 2025
There's nothing worse than starting a new knitting project, getting into the rhythm of casting on, and then…running out of yarn! It's happened to the best of us. Last year, I was so excited to start knitting a tunic (still on my to-do list). It’s a bottom-up project, and to begin, I had to cast on 400 stitches. Everything was going smoothly until I reached about 380 stitches - and then I ran out of yarn. Talk about frustrating!
Why Do We Run Out of Yarn While Casting On?
When you’re using a long-tail cast-on, it can be really tricky to estimate how much yarn you’ll need. In my blog post on how to work the long-tail cast-on, I shared the rule of thumb: you’ll need about four times the length of your finished project’s width in yarn. But even with this guideline, it’s easy to miscalculate.
If you don’t leave a long enough tail, you’ll run out of yarn before you finish casting on all your stitches. And if you leave too much, you end up wasting yarn. It’s a common problem for knitters of all levels - but luckily, there’s a really easy way to prevent running out of yarn.
The Simple Solution: Use Two Yarn Skeins
The easiest way to avoid running out of yarn while casting on is to use two yarn skeins. For most projects, we need more than one ball of yarn anyway, so this trick works perfectly. Even if your project technically only needs one skein, you can still use this method – simply take one strand from the outside of the ball and the other from the inside.
 | Take two strands of yarn |
How It Works
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Take two strands of yarn - either from two separate skeins or from the inside and outside of a single skein.
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Tie the two strands together in a slip knot and place it on your needle. This will act as your starting point for the long-tail cast-on. (The slip knot does not count as a stitch)
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Cast on your stitches as you would usually do with a long-tail cast-on. (If you need help with this, I’ve written a blog post with a step-by-step guide for it!)
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Once you’ve finished casting on, cut off the yarn that was placed over your thumb (the tail yarn).
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Undo the slip knot and start knitting as usual.
Click on any image to view it in a larger size!
 |  |  | Tie the two strands together in a slip knot... | ...and place it on your needle | Cast on your stitches as you would usually do with a long-tail cast-on |
 |  |  | The yarn that is placed over your thumb... | ...will be the strand you need to cut | Undo the slip knot |
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A Small Trade-Off
The only small extra step is weaving in two extra ends later, but the peace of mind is worth it! - you can be 100% certain that you’ll have enough yarn to cast on your project without any frustration.
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 | Two extra strands to weave in |
Final Thoughts
I’m so glad I learned this trick – it saves me so much frustration! Whether you’re casting on 40 stitches or 400, you’ll never have to worry about running out of yarn again. Give it a try on your next project, and let me know how it works for you.
Until then, happy knitting!
A Little Way to Say Thanks
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