258 rows to the end of the first skein; 376 rows to the end of the second skein. Approximately 3 yards left; I might have squeezed out one more row. Before blocking, it’s about 66 inches long and 22 inches wide at the wide end. Dimensions and photos after blocking will come later.

I figured out some stuff about gauge. First--it’s blocking right now, so I don’t know what gauge I got. But my early attempts were curling a lot, and I think that’s because the row gauge for garter is much tighter than the row gauge for stockinette; typically, the ratio is 3:2, I think. This difference is why so many sweaters have you pick up stitches and knit a ribbed button band on a sweater rather than just knitting three or four stitches at the front edge in garter as you go: that garter button band draws up the front of your stockinette sweater.

So my stockinette sections kept trying to poke up above the neighboring garter stitches and that caused puffiness and rolling. By going to a US10.5/6.5mm needle, I got my gauge loose enough that my garter stitch didn’t make my stockinette draw up or roll. (Note: Your garter rows might not be as tight as mine in comparison to your stockinette, but I’ve run into this enough in sweaters that I know I have to be careful about pattern selection and be prepared to pick-up-and-knit a ribbed band on the front of a cardigan rather than knitting a garter band as I go.) Since I upsized the needle enough to avoid the rolling, I’ve got a really loose final product. If I had it to do over again, I’d go down to the US10/6.0mm needle for this yarn; but I knit with US9/5.5mm for a while, and I know that size was still rolling, so I think I’d have needed that US10/6.0mm to get the gauge loose enough.

End of Row 70: 21.5cm with US7/4.5mm.
End of Row 70: 25.5cm with US9/5.5mm.
End of Row 70: 27cm with US10½/6.5mm.

I didn’t like the feel of the fabric knitted on US7/4.5mm. I’ve ripped back and restarted with US9/5.5mm. (Much better.) My theory? The pattern called for US7/4.5mm, which is one size larger than Malabrigo recommends for the original yarn. So I’ve gone with the US9/5.5mm, which is one size larger than Malabrigo recommends for Rios.

End of the first time through the entire pattern (both transitions, and all the recommended increase rows for each): 58.5cm long (with US9/5.5mm), 20cm wide (at the widest), using approximately 47g of yarn.

US9/5.5mm is good, but this might be even more drapey (drapier?) with the next size larger.

End of the first time through the entire pattern (both transitions, and all the recommended increase rows for each): 70cm long (with US10.5/6.5mm), 22.5cm wide (at the widest), using approximately 43g of yarn. Yes, less yarn to reach a longer width with a larger needle. I’m guessing it’s because the stuff knitted with US9/5.5mm is much denser than what knitted up with the larger needle. I didn’t weigh both balls to start with, and they may not have weighed the same. But I have 57.3g left on the ball at this point on US10.5/6.5mm, and 53g left at this point on US9/5.5mm.

Through the pattern again. It’s about 41” (104cm) long and 14” (35.5cm) wide. I’m still on the first ball of yarn, with about 7gr left. This length would work well for a scarf, but I’m going to keep going with the second ball.

The first ball ended/second ball began at 288 rows. I spotted an error at about row 58. I fixed the error. Happily, it’s easier to change garter to stockinette than vice versa.