the fenced in pattern is now available for free from my ravelry shop. please help yourself! :)

i knit this fenced in (size L) in one evening for the purl jam fenced in photo shoot! i cabled without a cable needle for super speedy hat production as follows:

i did the 2 stitch cables without cabling or droppping stitches by working the 2nd stitch on the left needle before the first (aka twist). this is easy to do if you are a loose knitter. here’s how:

CR (cable 1 stitch right over purl): this is easy & fast: knit 2nd stitch on left needle, purl 1st stitch on left needle, drop both worked stitches from left needle.

CLk (cable 1 stitch left over knit): reach behind the 1st stitch on left needle and knit into the front of the second stitch (awkward), knit 1st stitch on left needle, drop both worked stitches from left needle.

CL (cable 1 stitch left over purl): reach behind the 1st stitch on left needle and purl into the front of the second stitch (very awkward), knit 1st stitch on left needle, drop both worked stitches from left needle.

for the 3 stitch cable in the top decreases, i used the left cable techniques (slip, work, secure slipped, drop, catch worked & work slipped) using methods from grumperina’s tutorial as follows:

CLp2tog (cable 1 stitch left over p2tog): with yarn in back (wyib) slip 1 stitch purlwise onto right needle, p2tog from left needle, wyib insert left needle into the front of slipped stitch on right needle, pull right needle out of both the p2tog stitch and the slipped stitch (now held on left needle), put right needle back in the p2tog stitch, knit the slipped stitch from the left needle.

the CL and CLk can also be done using grumperina’s method if it’s too awkward to work as a twist.

yarn: lovely and very soft. a little lighter than the usual bulky despite its label. no knots!!

needles: 6mm 16” circ and top on dpns

fit: this hat is stretchy and would fit a larger 23” head as well.

special note: i gave the size L hat shown here to a friend with a medium sized head for use as a chemo cap. it was a good choice because the yarn is so soft and washable and the hat is long and loose enough to cover the head but not be restrictive.