Breaking the rules

The pug sweater is on hold while I await inspiration on the finishing details. Meanwhile, I have been focusing on the Koolhaas hat. I've made some good progress, given that there are 144 stitches in each round.

Admittedly, I didn't like this project at first. I made several mistakes and the early rounds were a little tight. And twisting the knit stitches (to improve stitch definition) didn't help either. But as it has gone along and the pattern has become more recognizable, I am really becoming enamored with this little hat. Plus, I developed a trick to help in the cabling where the lines cross--one that kind of breaks some rules.

Normally, you would hold the traveling knit stitch and the middle purl stitch to the front on the cable needle. Then, knit from the left needle, purl off the back of the cable needle, and finally knit off the front of the cable needle. This was too much knitting acrobatics for me, especially with the twisted knit stitches. So, I have taken to picking up all three stitches on the cable needle, rotating 180 degrees clockwise, and knitting normally off the back of the needle. This picture shows the three stitches rotated just before being knitted.

This creates the cable cross and twists the stitches in one step. The downside is that it also twists the center purl stitch as well, but that stitch kind of gets buried anyway. This may be some standard technique that I just haven't come across before, but to me, it feels like I am breaking some rules. And to be honest, I kind of like that.