Here’s a cool project that can be customized in a million ways.

The horizontal cable panel at the base is knit flat, as a long strip, and then joined into a round. Any cable design would look great here, the more unique the better, so bust out your stitch dictionaries. This is the perfect project to showcase your coolest cablework; you’ll find the strip is really fun to knit, with no distracting stockinette border to break up your single-minded cable focus.

The Bavarian twisted-stitch panel can be similarly customized. I made this hat extra-tall to accommodate my mom’s Jew ‘fro, but if you prefer a rounder hat, just knit fewer rounds of the colorwork panel.

This is a small, quick project that changes often to hold your interest. It’s an easy way to try out techniques that might seem daunting in a bigger project. Screw around with it, and make it your own!

Male model: Trevor Robison
Photographer: Victoria Holt