How Do I Know When My Shawl Is Long Enough?

Cindyln asked "How do you know when your shawl is big enough? With it being on the circular needles it is hard to tell actually how big it is. How do I tell when it gets to the size I want?"

There are three different methods for measuring something that is wider than the needles you are using:

1. Slip half the stitches onto another circular needle (or needles) until the stitches are evenly spread out. This is easiest if the spare needles are SMALLER than the ones you are using to knit the shawl. Lay it on the floor and measure it. You can also try it on to see if it is long enough and wide enough for YOU. When you are done, slip the stitches back onto your original needle.

2. Thread a yarn needle with a looooong piece of dental floss or string or smooth yarn. Slip the stitches from the knitting needles onto the dental floss. You can see an in progress picture (at the bottom) here. Take out the knitting needles - the stitches are held on the floss. Try it on or measure it. When you are done, put the stitches back on the needle.

3. Measure your stitch gauge (number of stitches per inch) and multiply the number of stitches per inch by the number of stitches you have on the needle. This will tell you approximately how wide your shawl is. Now count the number of rows you have in one inch. Multiply this number by the length of your shawl (from the needles down to the point.) This will tell you how long your shawl is.

The last method is the easiest but it does not allow for the weight and drape of your yarn so it is less accurate.