Girly Cabled Brimmed Beanie

I REALLY wanted to make this cute hat. I decided that this year I want to advance my skills and take on more complex projects. I met Mary (the knit whisperer) at the cafe a couple of weeks ago and she showed me how to do cables (very easy) and a few other tricky stitches. First I made the hat in a beige color and it came out way too small. So I upped my needle size and yarn weight by one and followed the same pattern and it fit perfectly. I made the beanie and the strip (complete with button holes) across the front with zero errors. It looked and fit perfect. Next, I began working on the brim. I tried it three times and also tried doing it on some test pieces at least five times. It just didn't look that great. I could not grasp the M1R and M1L concept the pattern designer came up with. I spent two days trying to perfect it (swearing) and searching the internet for the technique - with no avail. Finally, I just did it my own way by cutting out a small brim of heavy cardboard, knitting a strip to cover it and sewing it on. It looked fine. The hat also looked really nice without a brim at all. The leopard print buttons completed the look. Here is a link to the pattern: http://www.rosi-g.com/uploads/capitanhat.pdf