Felted Sweater Throw - Uhoh!

Trial and Error    See how twisted - Yikes!

This is going to drive me crazy!!  I thought I was ready to start cutting the sweaters into squares but I was so terribly wrong.  I was going to leave the ribbing on the sleeves and the large pieces and then arrange them so that they gave the throw a nice ribbed border that I would not have to add at the end.

What I did not realize was the pull of the ribbing until I tried to cut my squares.

I experimented with a moth eaten sleeve (top).  It is only a few inches wide but the ribbing is already twisting.  The whole throw will be wonky if I don't trim off the ribbing.  This means I have to redo all my math since the squares will now be different sizes! 

Do you have any advice?

Back to the drawing board - literally!