Alright, I'm relatively new to knitting(about 3 months in) and I'm working on a project for my soon-to-be-born niece :woohoo:

Here's the link to the pattern:

http://www.lionbrand.com/patterns/70090A.html?r=1


In case you can't get to it for whatever reason, it's a square, knitted diagonally from corner to opposite corner, about 20 inches across. After that, you make a separate triangle(10inches wide), then sew it on to the blanket part.

What I would like to do would be to make the second triangle part as I'm knitting the last part of the square so that it is already attached and I don't have the seam that would be there if I sewed it on after.

I think that would make it stronger and it would have a more streamlined look.

What I'm stuck on is this:

In the decreasing part, it says "Knit 2, yarn over needle, knit next 2 stitches together twice, knit to end of row."

I'm confused as to how I'd do the counting on this. Do I just mirror it when I get back around to the hood part?

I have cable needles and a set of DPNs. I was planning on switching to the cables when I got that far.

ALSO, do you think I'd be better off sticking with the pattern or going along with my altered pattern?

Thanks for any insights and help! =)

Here's a pattern that is similar that get almost to the end of the blanket and then starts increasing again for the hood. You still have to seam the edges, but that shouldn't be hard to make look nice.

The increases in this pattern are different than yours so I would increase as you are with the YO because I think it looks nice. I'm just showing you this to let you see how the hood can be done.
http://bundlesoflove.org/DonnasHoodedTowelandWashCloth?PHPSESSID=e3d37042e2 260e711d1f04ce59e38efc

I don't think sewing the hood to the blanket later is a problem either in the look or the security of the seam. But, if you have the idea to knit this as one piece, why not give it a try? You can always rip it out if you don't like it.
Since you'll be working in the round, place a marker at the joins between blanket and hood sts and do the decreases every other round on both sides of the blanket and on both sides of the hood. That would mean a mirrored decrease on either side of the markers.
In the round you'll have to knit one round and purl one round in order to maintain the garter st pattern. Enjoy knitting the blanket, whatever you decide to do!

Thanks for the advice. =) I'm not sure which way I'll go about this, put your insights are really helpful. I had totally forgotten about markers. So far I've only done small, simple projects that don't need markers.