Confused and getting frustrated.

I am knitting an Easy placemat pattern. It is driving me crazy because the stitch count keeps changing.
The pattern is Yarnspirations (Sugar’n Cream) called Retro Stripes Knit Placemat. Cast on 57 stitches then:
1st Row: K2, *yo, Sl1, K2 P2sso. Rep. from * to last st. k1
2nd Row: Purl
3rd Row: K1, S1, K2, P2sso, yo. Rep. from * to last 2 sts. k2
4th Row: Purl
Couldn’t be easier I thought. I keep getting rows that are 56 stitches instead of 57? I just did the math - Row 1 is 8 x 7 stitches = 56 plus 1
Row 3 is 11 x 5 stitches = 55 stitches plus 2.
What can I be doing wrong? Please help.

The repeat in rows 1 and 3 take 3sts and leaves you with 3 sts. It’s repeated 18 times for 54sts. Add in the K2 before the repeat and the K1 after and it’s 57sts as you said.
It sounds like a random mistake rather than something consistently wrong. You could try marking off the repeats (3sts between markers) or maybe every 2 repeats (6sts between markers) to isolate where the mistake is. Can you see a variation in the pattern or is it too early to spot it?

No, the pattern looks correct, as in pic below…

image1.jpeg

Wendy-Lynne MacKinnon

T. 250-499-2065, ext. 142

C. 250-741-8208

”Attitude is the paint brush that colours your life!”

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Beautiful!
It’s hard to see how the difference could be in the sts outside the repeat and yet still give you the pattern. I’d say continue as you are going. It’s going to be lovely.

I am puzzled by the math you quoted.
“Row 1 is 8 x 7 stitches = 56 plus 1
Row 3 is 11 x 5 stitches = 55 stitches plus 2.”
I see it as 18 times a repeat of 3sts. There are 3sts outside the repeat.
(18x3) + 3

I got it now. I think what was happening is I did a Row 3 instead of a Row 1 and so the count was incorrect. Thank you so much for your input. I seem to be on track now.

Wendy-Lynne MacKinnon

”Attitude is the paint brush that colours your life!”