Haberdashery

Ta Da!!  I'm a haberdasher!  I've made a hat!

When I first started knitting in the round, I did it with the time honored method of double pointed needles.  I quickly discovered that it was hard to knit that way.  It took a lot of practice to make it so you weren't constantly poking yourself in the hand/arm/eye.  And I discovered that I always had the problem of a bit of "laddering" between the needles.  My stitches weren't tight enough from one needle to the next.  I thought there had to be an easier way.

Ah!  The magic loop method.  The method of using one super long circular and pulling the cable out between stitches so that half of the stitches are on either side.  I was intrigued by this and enjoyed it, but I always had the problem of a bit of laddering at the beginning of the rounds.  And also, sometimes the cable itself got unwieldy and bent in a consternating fashion.  There had to be an easier way!

My preferred method now is the best I've found yet.  Using two circular needles.  Half the stitches on one, half on the other.  It doesn't matter how many or how few stitches you have on either one because the cable always bends where you need it too.  I don't have any of the problems that I'd had previously.  It's now my go to method whenever I knit in the round.  I highly recommend it.  

This hat, as I previously mentioned, is inspired by one of my favorite sweaters.  It has four cables, all with left leaning twists, that twists ever eight rows.  The only thing I made a change to is twisting alternate cables on a different row.  Every four rounds, I twisted a cable, but only every other one.  Just to give it a bit of movement.


I offset the cables by one stitch so that it basically straddled the ribbing.  And put a panel of four stitches of stockinette between the cables.   The construction of the hat is pretty standard.  Cast on 80 stitches.  Work 2x2 rib for two inches.  Slip the first stitch of the round onto the other needle.  Knit 4, purl 4, knit 8, purl 4, repeat around.  It's on the knit 8 panels that you twist your cables.  You can do it whenever you want.  Work until the hat is approximately 6 inches (try the hat on.  I always do.  When it reaches your earlobes is about when it's time to start the decreases).  I then knit one round plain.  After that, it's standard decreasing.  Knit 8, knit 2 together all the way around.  Knit one round even.  Knit 7, knit 2 together...knit a round even.  Knit 6, knit 2 together...get my drift?  Keep doing that until you have 16 stitches.  Knit 2 together around, cut an 8 inch tail, thread it through the remaining stitches, close it up.  Ta da!  Hat!

And that's how I made Izzy's hat.  And remembered to take a picture!