The lower body is worked in one piece to the armholes, then the fronts and back are divided for working separately to the shoulders.

The stitch count of the Roman Stripe pattern does not remain constant throughout. It temporarily increases for Rows 1 and 2, then decreases back to the original stitch count in Row 3. Always count stitches for the gauge swatch and during shaping after completing Rows 3, 4, 5, 6, or 7 of the pattern when the original stitch count has been restored.

The Roman Stripe pattern repeats over an odd number of rows, which means that the fabric does not have defined right or wrong sides. For example, if you work a repeat with Rows 1, 3, 5, and 7 as RS rows, the following repeat will begin with Row 1 as WS row, and Rows 3, 5, and 7 will be WS rows for the rest of this repeat. Because both sides of the fabric appear similar, you may find it helpful for shaping purposes to mark the RS of each piece with a removable marker or scrap yarn.