Ha! I just went through the same dilemma. I have a typical striped Cacala peshtemal Turkish towel that I travel with, but I agree that it looks a little towel-y as a scarf (but not so much on you!), so I don't wear it as such, which means it ends up taking space in bag. I recently got this one (https://www.amazon.com/Bersuse-100-Cotton-Peshtemal-Stonewash/dp/B01LT57GOC) as it is more subdued in pattern, but it's a bit thicker and rougher in texture and I still think it kind of looks towel-y, but not as bad. Just came across this company (https://rivieratowel.com/products/careyes-towel) with some decent options, and they donate proceeds to The Sea Turtle Conservancy).

@ArtofRebellion, which size Outlier did you get, and does it work ok as a scarf?

I like the idea of making my own towel. Scarves are narrower than towels, which makes wearing a towel as a scarf a bit bulky. If there was a good way to join 2 pieces, then maybe splitting it in half horizontally would solve my dilemma of wanting to save space in bag and being able to have decent looking scarf. In other words, when in transit, wear 1 half as scarf, pack other half, then when you need a towel, join the 2 halves together. Hmm, new product in the making?