How to Knit the Cascade Scarf | Free Beginner-Friendly Scarf Pattern

To make the Cascade Scarf, you're going to need about 400 yards of a lightweight to DK yarn. You can really use any kind of yarn. I will tell you the pattern repeat so that way if you would like to make it wider or skinnier, you'll know what number of cast on stitches to do. So that means you can use worsted, any kind of yarn, because this pattern will work just for about anything. But I'm on a mission to try to use up all of my stash yarn. I'm trying to not make a bunch of purchases that I don't need to this year, so I am using some of this ice yarn that appeared in my stash somehow, and this one is called Magic Light. That's a really pretty self-striping, so I'm hoping this will look really nice with this stitch pattern. You'll also see on the pattern page a variation made with a solid color yarn, so you can see what that looks like. But I thought this looked cool, so I wanted to give it a try. This one's 100% acrylic. Any kind of yarn should be fine for this project. It's a scarf, you don't have to make it difficult, so grab whatever yarn you have in your stash and try it out. And then for the needles we're going to use a 4.5 or US 7 knitting needle. I have these from Lantern Moon that I absolutely love because of the swivel on the interchangeable. It makes it Keeps it from getting all tangled up, but you can also use straight needles. But I'll link to these and the yarn in case you want to check either of those out. Then besides that, I'm going to teach you a little trick with stitch markers. So I have some locking stitch markers that will come in handy in a little while. And then scissors and a needle to weave in your ends. And then of course the pattern, so go into the description to get to that. And we will get started. But first, if you like free patterns, reviews, tutorials, and all that good stuff, be sure to hit the like, subscribe, and notification bell so you never miss out when a new video is released. Now, back to the pattern. Okay, so to get started, I'm putting yarn barf to the side, because I got my end out, and we're going to cast on. Now, in the pattern, you'll see two different cast on amounts. One's going to make a wider scarf, and the other one's going to be a little bit more narrow. repeat for this specific stitch pattern is eight stitches plus two so you can do multiples of eight and then add two stitches to that for your cast on so you'll see a cast on of 50 that's the solid color green scarf so you'll see it's a little bit wider and then for this one we are going to cast on 42. So. 8 times 5 is 40 plus 2, so that's going to give us a little bit more of a narrower scarf. And the reason I'm doing that is because I still want kind of the same length because the other scarf also used some more yardage. There was almost about 450 yards in that one, so I'm going a little skinnier to adjust for how much yarn I have. So that's one tip that if you really want to use a particular yarn but you think you don't have enough yardage, make it a little bit skinnier and it should be fine. So I'm going to go ahead and just do a long-tail cast-on for this. I have plenty of cast-on tutorials if you want to make more. I'm going to guesstimate how much I need. Usually you want to go about an inch for every stitch that you need to cast on. So I always do, if you don't know the trick, put the yarn to your nose and stretch your arm out wide, and that's about three feet usually, give or take. So about three feet plus a little bit more for the 42. Inches that we would need and we're good to go. Easy way to slip knot, because I see some weird instructions. Hold it, here's your working tail, grab it, twist it down, reach through for the yarn that's part of your yarn and not your working tail, and make a loop. So just in case you have weird tutorials on those, that's an easy way to do it. So if you don't know how to do a long tail cast on, I will link that. We're going to just zoom through these so that way we can get going on the pattern repeat because it is a long Repeat. It's 16 rows, but we're going to kind of work on something so that it's not as difficult to keep track of. And then once I get these, did I say 50? We're doing 42. So we're doing 42 for this one. But we're going to do 42 cast-ons and then come back to start the repeat. Okay, I've got my 42 cast-on stitches and I'm ready for row one. You'll see that I've added something to the... Table here. This is my most favorite thing that I have purchased from Etsy so far. This is my row counter, but it's also almost like a fidget toy because it's just so satisfying. Let me see. You can hear the click. That is just so satisfying to move. But if you don't have locking stitch markers. You can use one of these or one of those little clicky stitch row counters so that way you can keep track when you're doing your stitch pattern so you don't lose your place and end up messing up the pattern repeat. So I'm going to be using this with the stitch markers just so you can see both. I'll link this, I got this as part of like an Etsy gift video so I'll link that as well so you can see. The other things that I got, this is from Green Owl Pharmacy, but that's not their name on Etsy, so be sure to click the link in the description if you want to go check these out. They have ones with lots of different combinations of rows, so just very cool stuff. So that's my spiel on that. So for our very first row, and all of these are going to be in groups of four, so for the most part we're kind of doing the same thing for four rows. That'll make more sense when we get to row two, but it's in groups of four to make the cascading stitch pattern, hence the pattern name. So for row one, what we're going to be doing is starting the stitch repeat off right away, and it's an eight stitch repeat, and then the very last two stitches are not going to be part of the repeat. So we're going to be doing four knit stitches, and then we're going to do four purl stitches, and that's it. So four knit, four purl. And then keep repeating that across, I wasn't paying attention so let me count, sorry. So very simple, knit four, purl four. When you get to the end, you're just going to knit two. That's those last two stitches, so we'll come back right at the end of the row so we can look at those knit two and then start row two. Okay here I am at the very last two stitches of row one, and we're going to knit those two Then I'm going to click my little clicker here. We're not touching the stitch markers yet, but I always mark mine after I finish it. So that way, if I'm looking, if I put it down and I'm like, what row am I on? If I still have stitches left, I know that I'm currently on the row that I have my marker on. I don't put it on to row two until I'm done with row two. If that makes sense, do it however you like. Okay, so for row two... What we're going to do is the opposite of what we just did, so when you say, when you hear knit the knits and purls the purls, that's basically what we're doing. We're going to start with two purls, which is not part of the stitch pattern, so you see we have two purls from below, doing those two knits at the very last stitch, and then we're going to knit the knits, so we have four knits below, you can see the V's there, and this is part, the beginning of the stitch pattern, so four knits. And then four purls in the purls below. And then since this is the stitch pattern, we will end with the stitch pattern. So we'll end with four purls at the end of this row. Keep on working those four knits, four purls across, and then we'll come back to talk about rows three and four, which will be very familiar because we just did them. Okay, last two purls of row two, and now we're ready for rows three and four, and three and four, because I said these are grouped, these, the stitch pattern is grouped in rows of four, so what we're going to do is we're going to repeat rows one and two, so again, we're going to knit the knits and purls, purls the purls, purl the purls. For the next two rows, exactly as it was below, so for row three, we're going to knit four, purl four, and then knit two at the end. Row 4, we're going to purl 2, and then knit 4, purl 4, and just the exact same thing. Then we'll come back for row 5, where it's going to change slightly, and we'll get those locking stitch markers going so you can see what I mean by those. So do rows 3 and 4, and then we will come back to start the new portion. of the stitch pattern on row five okay here i am at the end of round four so what i'm gonna do now on this last loop of round four i'm gonna put round what do i keep saying round row four i'm gonna put one of these locking stitch markers am i so shaky too much caffeine okay turn to start row So, five. So the reason I have this here is to keep track of my rows a little better. So if you're not great at reading your stitches, these are fairly simple because it's just simple Vs, but an easy way to make sure that you don't have to sit there and try to count every single one of them and then move as that because these are going to travel, you can put a stitch marker every four rows And that indicates you finished that section and you're ready for the next section and then as you're going You can get a quick visual of where you are in the pattern So if you're not using and I didn't move before here if you're not using Anything marking your rows and you feel pretty confident. This can just kind of help you on top of that So you'll see how those go. I'm gonna leave that one there and you'll see as we go how I add those. All right With all that said, let's start row five. All right, so this is cascading. This is the cascade scarf, so we're going to cascade the pattern repeat. So we are going to now move pretty much everything over two stitches, or kind of more that way. We're moving everything that way two stitches. So to begin, we're doing just two knits. So this is not part of the pattern repeat, this is just Start off stitches, and then we're going into the pattern repeat. So because we're moving everything two stitches that way, we're now doing four purls to start with, and then four knits. And that's it. Just four purls, four knits, over and over to the end of the row. So as you're looking and working this, because this is changing... Use your stitches below. You should have, like, here's my next four knits. It's the beginning of the last two purls and then two knits. So if you have three purls or three knits, you're off somewhere. So stop and go back and double check your numbers. So I still have two more knits here. Do I? I don't know. What am I on? I feel like that was wrong. What do we got here? Am I not counting? Look, I'm not counting. Am I? 1, 2, 3, 4, and I'm good. I'm good. So I look for my little bumps just to count. So here's a bump, bump, bump, bump, 4. Oh no, I did. Did I? No, I'm good. Pull your stitches down. Then you can see easier. So pull them down. Look for the bumps. 4 bumps. Pull those down. I have 4 knits. Pull those down. I have 4 bumps. Now I'm ready for knits again. When I talk at the same time as knitting, I lose my place. Okay, so keep going and I'll meet you at the end of this. Okay, here I am. Last four knit stitches. Now I'm ready for row six. And now we kind of start over the knits and purl the purls. So to begin, we're going to do four purls because we have four purls below because those last four were knits and now they've turned into purls after we turn it over. See the four bumps? Okay, so we're going to do four purls and then four knits. And keep on doing that until the very end where we'll have two purls right at the end because we started with two knits on the last row. So keep going to the end of this row and we'll meet up right at those two purls to talk about Let's talk about rows 7 and 8. But you might be able to guess what's going to happen. Alright, I'm coming back real quick. Because when I talk, I lose place. So I was going and I'm like, wait, that doesn't look right. I just already fixed one. I had two extra pearls where I should not have had them. So I just wanted to show you how to fix that really quick. Have a crochet hook on hand, it does not need to be this fancy, this was just the closest one. Make sure it's kind of small so that you can do this. So you're going to drop your stitch, so this is a purl and it needed to be a knit stitch, so I'm just going to drop it and pull that out. Don't pull too hard, you're going to lose more rows and you'll have to fix more. Then because I'm making a knit stitch, I'm going in from the front. So I'm going into the last loop that's there after I pull that stitch out. And then I'm grabbing the yarn and pulling it up. Then I'm just going to place that back on my left hand needle with the right. loop of the right leg in the front so I can knit into it easy. So keep a crochet hook on hand, because especially with this, if you're not paying attention, you're probably going to get off at some point, and that will help change as you're going up the next row. You'll probably catch it. And then you can fix it easily and not have to unknit, it'll be a lot more simple. Here I am at the last six stitches. I'm still on row five. And those last two purl stitches. That guy, actually I'm on row six. I'm kidding, I forgot to change my thing. I am just a basket case this morning. Okay, finished row six. Sorry guys, I'm confusing you. So for rows seven and eight, it's going to be like rows three and four. Threes and four? We are going to repeat. 5 and 6. So we're knitting the knits and purling the purls so that way we have the same four rows again like rows 1 through 4. So for row 7, we will knit 2 and then it'll be purl 4, knit 4. Then row 8, we'll be flipping it, and it'll be purl 4, knit 4, all the way to the end, and then you'll have two purls at the very end. So we're going to go ahead and do 7 and 8, and then come back for row 9, where we're going to start shifting it again. Okay, here's the last two purls, and then again I'm going to put a locking stitch marker in that loop. And look, it coordinates. It's like the same color. Ooh, it totally blends. Knit picks, if you like that color. These are from Knit Picks. If I can get that in there, not split the yarn. Go. And the reason that I do the locking stitch markers is because I'm going to be flipping this thing back and forth all the time, so I don't want, like, an open-end stitch marker because it will fall out eventually. And, of course, you can't use, like, a solid one because it will live there forever. So now we've got four... And eight completed and now we're moving on through two of my things. I don't get us all confused moving on from nine To twelve. So again, we're shifting two to the right So the last time we had two knit stitches in the beginning this time we're moving our purls all the way over So we're doing four purls to start with and our stitch repeat is this so four purls And then four knits across the board, already lost my count, and then we're going to do uh two purls at the very end is what we'll have left over, that's not part of the stitch repeat. So keep on going with the four purls, four knits, and we'll meet up right at the end of the row. Okay here we are, last two purls, now we're ready for row 10 and it's time to knit the knit and purl the purls again. So we're going to start off with two knits, and then we're going four purls, four knits, across the board again. So now you can look at your stitches below and copy those, and then we'll come back just to reiterate rows 11 and 12, and you probably want to see how the stitch or the row counter, how you track beyond nine. If you can't tell already, I'll see you right at the end of this row. Okay, last three knit stitches, and row 10 is done. And now this is my most satisfying thing when I get to go all the way back down to zero and then pop this up to ten and then I start over so then I go up again and then I just love this thing. This thing is like so satisfying. Okay. Rows 11 and 12, repeating 9 and 10, so we'll be doing 4 purls, 4 knits, and then 2 purls at the end for row 11, and then row 12 we'll do a knit 2 on the other side, purl 4, knit 4, so go ahead and do rows 11 and 12, and then we'll be down to our last 4 row repeat. Okay, last four knit stitches. Let's get one of our stitch markers here. And if you have lots of these, which they sell them in huge amounts, which is ridiculous for the most part, but it'll actually come in handy because you can just go 4, 6, 8, 12, whatever, to be able to keep track of everything, and then that way you don't have to count everything individually if you get a little bit out of place. So now we are ready for row 13 through 16 the very last of the stitch pattern and you can see it's starting to form. It's not super visible kind of with this first 16 rows it almost looks kind of basket weavey but as it grows and you see the cascading happening it starts looking much cooler. Plus, I'm like, of course I started with the darkest part of the yarn, so I have lots of lights and stuff in here, so this should be really pretty as I go, but I'm finally getting into a color change, so this has a pretty good almost 12 rows before a color change, so that's really cool. So, anyways, I'm rambling today. Now for row 13, as we shift our pattern over, so we had four purls, so we're shifting two to the right, so now we're only gonna have two purls. So that's not part of the stitch repeat, that's outside of it. So just two purls this time. And then our stitch repeat, four knits, four purls. Probably could have guessed that. So we're gonna do that, and then come back at the end of the row, just to go over row 14 real quick. And then a little bit more, and then you'll be off to the races. Last four, all purls. We are on to 14, where we've knit the knits and purls the purls. I keep saying purls the purls. So we just did four purls, so now we're going to do four knits. And I take, like normally I really look at the stitch below when I'm doing this. Just to make sure I catch myself if I accidentally only did two or three. So, you know, just pay attention. This is a good pattern to learn to read your stitches really well. Because it should stick out to you if you're in one of the three rows after the main row because you should be Knitting the knits and purling the purls. So I thought I did four already and I'm like, oh wait No, there's another one. I just want to double-check and I'm like, oh, yeah, I've only done three purls So get in the habit of reading your stitches. So we're gonna finish this row. It's going to end With what is it gonna end with? I don't even know. What do we have? Knits? So two purls. No, two knits actually. Yeah, two knits. So keep on going. We'll end at this row and then talk about 15 and 16 and kind of finishing up. Okay, I just did my last two without you and my two knits. So now we're ready for 15 and 16. We're repeating 13 and 14. So we're going to do two purls. Four knits, four purls across, four fifteen, and then flip it around and then we're gonna knit four, purl four, knit two. And then that is all 16 of the row stitch repeat. Cheat. Say that for some reason. After that you are going to repeat Rows 1 through 16, so you can do it until your yarn runs out. I would just, like, if you're getting close, finish it at the end of one of the groups of four. So you do three more rows normally of that last four, and then the very last row will be your bind off. So you will bind off in pattern on whatever of that last row of the four. So don't worry about being rows 12 through 16, you're just going to bind off when you get to the end of the fourth of whatever four-row repeat you are on, and then you weave in your ends and you're all done. So I hope you enjoyed this project, I'd love to see what you make, so be sure to tag me, my links are all in my description, but I am Deja with Knit and Crochet Ever After, and thank you for watching!