Is it just me? I keep messing up a simple pattern

Hi everyone! This is my first post as I just signed up tonight after almost calling it quits on a baby blanket project. The pattern seems simple since it is a series of k or p in every row. The problem is that no two rows are alike and my eyes keep inadvertently skipping over a step, so when I get near the end of a row I can see it is wrong based on how many stitches are left.
The pattern is written out row by row like this: Row 1: k30 p1 k10 p1 k5 p2 k4 p1 and so on. I am finding I tend to miss one in the line somewhere and keep having to pull stitches out back to the mistake and then start from there to fix it. There must be a trick I donā€™t know to keep your eyes from skipping ahead or redoing the previous step. Iā€™ve tried several things to no avail. I hope this makes sense! Thanks and Help!

Hi and welcome to KH. What pattern are you using? There are some things that can help. I like to copy and paste the text of patterns into a text document then format it to be easier to follow. Sometimes that means breaking up lines and spacing things out to separate the parts into manageable chunks. I work from a printout of my doctored version. I try to check every so often before I get to the end of the row and see if I can find mistakes sooner rather than later and will use a removable marker to know where I last ended my counting. I also mark up my pattern printout a lot, in pencil so I can erase and make changes, checking off the parts Iā€™ve done and believe to be done correctly. I expect youā€™ll get other suggestions.

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Welcome to the forum!
These rows are so difficult to follow. Charts simplify the task for the very reason you mention. Itā€™s easier to keep your place and even your row or round.
I like GGā€™s suggestion to copy the rows and break them up. If thereā€™s a center of symmetry or a repeat to the pattern you can check that youā€™re stitches are aligned at that point.
Knowing the pattern name and designer may help us with suggestions.

Good morning and thank you so much for your responses and suggestions. The pattern is called Dumbo blanket by LesTricotsdeDelia. It is a relief pattern. Most knitters seem to say it is easy for them to follow, but for me, it is really tricky not to skip over a step as I go along. I definitely am going to start checking as I go along the rows rather than waiting til the end.

That is a tricky looking pattern to follow using line by line instructions, so not easy at all!.
I would be inclined to invest a bit of time charting the motif manually on squared paper before you start, just colouring / highlighting the purl stitches. Itā€™s so much easier while knitting to see which stitches should be purled in relation to the purls in the row below, rather than by counting stitches.

There are big stocking stitch borders which donā€™t need to be charted so I would put a marker at the start and end of the motif. You can also have different colour markers every 10 or 15 stitches across the motif. You can mark these points with strong vertical lines on the squared paper. That way, you get extra feedback across the row as to whether your k/ p stitches are on track at the relevant point.
Finally, remember if you make a mistake, you donā€™t need to tink back . You can drop the relevant stitch (es) and reform as knit or purl as appropriate.

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Pattern link for interest!

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Thatā€™s an adorable blanket. I agree, line by line instructions are difficult to follow. I made a similar blanket with a fairy tale castle (Enchanted Castle) and I noticed stitches that were off pattern. I just corrected on the next row or fudged the lines. Not really noticeable at least not from a galloping horse.
Dumbo is more difficult since you donā€™t want to change him around too much. Looking at the photo every two rows or so should help keep you on track in addition to the suggestions above.

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Thatā€™s very cute! Iā€™ve used the suggestions given and the app, KnitCompanion. Iā€™ve also used a magnet board, post-it notes, and see-through colored tape to help keep my place. Finally, I had a very complicated pattern years ago that I copied and cut apart line by line (it was crochet and fairly large row sections). I taped each section to a different 3x5 card and put the cards on a key ring. Oh, Iā€™ve also highlighted each row in alternating colors.

Sometimes our brains just donā€™t want to cooperate with patterns. Maybe take a break and do something else then come back to Dumbo. Maybe your brain needs a break! Please show us your finished project.

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Print pattern, make 10x10 grid on it, use knit markers every 10th stitch than life line every 10th row. It will help you. I use it myself knitting difficult patterns, follow written pattern will be to difficult for me. TryšŸ˜ƒ

Ps: dont forget to do opposite stitches at even rows (knit=purl, purl=knit)

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@ZKOhio Thank you! I appreciate the help! Good idea about the stitch markers.

@Beth_Leatherman Haha my brain does need a break! I have stopped working on this in the later evening because it gets even more difficult when Iā€™m tired. Great suggestions. Thank you!

@salmonmac Thank you!

@Mel61 Thank you. I wasnā€™t sure how to add the link.

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@GrumpyGramma Thank you for the suggestions! Iā€™m so happy I found this forum!

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Iā€™m glad you found us!

Here are my two cents worth. I have had trouble staying focused even in simple stocking stitch (I use a clicky row counter for increases and that helps). I attribute this problem to ā€œwool gatheringā€ :roll_eyes: and have decided that a wandering mind is the enemy of knitting. When I mentioned this to a friend recently he suggested meditation. Ainā€™t gonna happen. I am so glad I read the earlier post that mentioned a life line in knitting. That would have saved me hours of tinking.

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