The number of cast on stitches in the pattern is correct (51 sts) because there are 3 sts increased in the set-up row.

Use the smaller needle for (only) the ribbing on the ends. (I’m adding a strip of ribbing in between the two end pieces which also use the smaller needle.) Use the larger needle starting with the set-up row for the main parts of the scarf..

Pattern makes reference to “charts”, but there are no charts - only written instructions. But it’s a very simple, 10-row repeat which is easy to memorize.

What I did differently:

• I did the first and last stitches of every row as follows (instead of what’s written in the pattern):

WITH YARN IN FRONT, slip the 1st stitch of every row purlwise

Knit the last stitch of every row

• I did two inches of ribbing on each end rather than the number of rows specified in the pattern because I think it looks better.

• Instead of the 10-row pattern repeat, I did a 6-row pattern repeat. This just simplifies things a bit because then all of the cable crossings happen on the same row (Row 3). Right and left twists are done on every RS (right side) row. Next time I knit this, I might try it the other way. Both ways look nice.

• In between the two end pieces, I did a ribbed section in the middle which measures approximately 12” long x 4.5” wide. Prior to doing the ribbed section, I decreased down from the 54 sts to 43 sts for the ribbing. I did the decreasing over 2 rows and then the sequence was as follows (M = marker. The markers are not really necessary. I just include them so that you can see how I decreased relative to the original placement of the markers in the pattern.):

Right Side: Slip the first st as if to purl, p1, k1, p1, k1, M, p2, k2, M, p2, k2, p2, M, p2, M, p2, k2, p1, k2, p2, M, k2, M, p2, k2, p2, M, k2, p2, M, k1, p1, k1, p1, k1

Wrong Side: With yarn in front, slip the first stitch purlwise. Knit the purl stitches and purl the knit stitches. Last stitch is always knitted.

The 3 skeins of Malabrigo Rios that I received from LoveCrafts were all quite different even though I ordered the same color (Ivy). So the other half of my scarf has more yellow in it (chartreuse green) and the darkest parts are darker with a pronounced yellow tinge. This is one reason why I don’t buy hand dyed yarn more often. The difference isn’t as evident in accessories which is why I decided to use this yarn for a hat and scarf. You don’t really notice the difference too much when worn, but you can definitely see the difference in the dye lots in one of the photos at left - laid out flat on a dresser top.

Normally I knit scarves that are longer than this one - preferably at least 6 feet long or longer. However, I did not have 3 full skeins since I had already knitted a hat from one of the skeins. So I just used all the remaining yarn for this scarf.

I chose to knit each side identically and separately because I’m better at grafting than at doing a perfect looking tubular bind-off. I think it’s most important to have both ends looking exactly the same.

Here’s a video tutorial of how to graft any combination of knit and purl stitches.

I don’t exactly graft as in the video, but I find my way difficult to describe. Instead of putting the wrong sides together, I lay my two pieces side by side (butting) with the right side up so that I can better see what I’m doing regarding the sequence of stitches as seen from above.

Tubular Cast-On Video