Knitting in the round with more than one color?

I’m very comfortable knitting in the round - I have made several stipeed hats no problem. Now I am working on more of a fair isle style hat and its not working. When I switch colors (just drop one and pick up the new one) there seems to be a significant gap between the stitches of the two colors. I am doing something wrong or missing a step? The look i’m trying to get is of diagonal stripes or a spiral around a hat. Suggestions? I’ve looked all over for tips…

Basically what you’re doing with this type of color change is intarsia. Instead of dropping the yarn, hold it over to the left when you start with the new color. Do this each time you change colors and they will become twisted and eliminate that gap.

Check out Amy’s video on intarsia in the Advanced Techniques section.