Any knitter who has ever knit in-the-round with different colors or stitch patterns knows about the dreaded jog.

Even Garter Stitch In-The-Round Has The Dreaded Jog

I’ve always loved the look of garter stitch hats. But whether you knit a hat in-the-round or flat, you’ll still need to decide on how you’ll avoid the jog or the seam. Or whether you’re okay with having a line down the vertical-length of the hat. And there are multiple methods for trying to hide the jog.

Helical knitting to the rescue!

Yes…helical knitting is a technique used for avoiding the jog when knitting colored stripes in-the-round. I’ve even done a video tutorial about it.

But it can also be used when you’re changing from knitting to purling in-the-round (to create garter stitch). Just use a second strand of yarn for your purl stitches! Instead of using a second strand for a different color, you just switch to the alternate strand of yarn when you’re switching from knitting to purling. And then back again when you get to to the main strand of yarn.

My latest hat design is a great looking garter stitch hat that looks seamless.

And I couldn’t be more pleased.

This hat is made with a yarn called Gina by Plymouth. The first hat was knit with US 8 (5 mm) needles and 80 stitches. I use a strand from the inside and the outside of the ball of the yarn and in helical fashion, I knit with one and purl with the other. The hat I created is a little bit to large for my taste, so I’m going to try making the same hat using a US 6 (4 mm) needle to see if I like the fit better.

Current Knitting

I have been making some progress on the last Teddy bear I’m constructing.

Just two arms, two ears and the facial embroidery.

Here are a couple photos of the finished garter stitch hat as well.

The garter stitch creates a very plush and spongey fabric that is very soft and warm. With this colorway of yarn, it blends the colors a bit more than I’d hoped, but I still like the blends of colors.