When Is It time to Stop?

When I went through one of my baskets of stash yarn the other day . . . (yes, you read it right, one of my baskets!) . . . I found two skeins of Manos del Uruguay (two different colors) that I forgot I even had. In the same basket was a pattern for a cowl that takes 1 skein. Okay, my next project was picked out!

It worked up quick . . .  there is a 5 row ridge of garter stitch, then two rows that are repeated for about 9 inches, and then another 5 rows of garter stitch and then you bind off. 


Easy enough, right? Wrong. I have this compulsion that I have to use all the yarn in the skein. If I get to the end of the last garter stitch ridge and I have too much yarn left over . . . . well, I'll feel wasteful. 

See . . . here is my cowl all done and I have all that extra yarn. I could have made it longer. For shame, for shame.



Then I had an epiphany. I could dig out my Weight Watchers food scale from the bottom of my cabinet. (This probably sheds some insight into how actively I am counting points lately!!) All I would have to do is weigh the skein of yarn and then weigh the needles . . . and of course write down the two weights . . .  since I will never remember them. Then I'll knit the the garter stitch ridge and weigh that. Since the needles will be attached to the project I'll subtract the weight of the needles . . . and then I'll know by weight how much yarn I will need to save in the skein for the last garter stitch ridge. I'll be able to come a lot closer to using the whole skein . . . and an added plus is I will be getting some use out of my food scale!!

Until next time, keep your nose in a book or your fingers in fiber.