The only Long Tail Cast On method you’ll ever need.

Knitters, don’t say I never give you guys anything!

This long Tail Cast On method is flawless.
You’ll never scrabble for yarn to make those last few stitches ever again.
Long Tail anxiety will be a thing of the past! And it’s so gosh darn easy.

Let me show you how.

Before we begin our long tail cast on.

Start off with your needle, and both ends of your yarn ball. Every ball has an inside end and an outside end. Fish them both out and have them ready to rock like this.

Knot the ends together

Yea, no… seriously.
I know a lot of knitters are averse to knots, but don’t worry, you can undo it later.
For now, gather your courage and make that knot!

Slip the needle between strands.

Your first cast on stitch is an easy one. Just pop your needle between the strands, and place the knot flush with your needle.
The front strand will act as your long tail, the back strand will make up your cast on stitches.

And then set your hands up as you would for a regular old long tail cast on.
Remember, the thumb holds the long tail, the index finger holds the new stitch.

After that, it’s just a matter of casting on as normal.
The bonus here is that your long tail will be exactly as long as you needed it to be because you’re feeding yarn out of your ball as you need it.

Do you have a tail or two more to weave in at the end?
Sure you do, but I think that’s a small price to pay for the peace of mind you get from possessing an infinite long tail!

Once you’ve cast on everything you need…

Simply snip the long tail strand…

…and carry on knitting merrily.

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They’re both knit/crochet combo patterns.