living in the woods and making stuff

It is really cold today. Perfect inspiration to make some mittens. Slightly bulky, and two color, which means extra thick and quick to knit!

I made these mittens with one strand of Rowan Cocoon, and one strand of Rowan British Sheep Breeds Bulky. A good combination. The cocoon is super soft and shiny, and the strand of British Sheep Breeds is soft, fuzzy and warm.

I took the basic pattern from a Lion Brand Pattern, and adjusted it so that the mitten fit…and the colors lined up well. As I was knitting, following the pattern I kept on having to rip and re-knit to adjust colors and sizes. Finally I stopped following the pattern, and made up my own. It worked out better that way.

The overall stitch pattern of the mitten is offset, alternating blue rows and blue and white rows. On the thumb there is a subtle difference, and the white dots line up, creating vertical as well as horizontal blue stripes. It worked out better this way with the thumb gusset increases.

I made the top decreases on either side to create a bit of a pointy tip, and kitchener stitched the last 16 (I think) stitches together with blue.

I used size 7 needles for the ribbing, and 8 to knit the mitten, so that the material was dense. It will felt a little with wear, which will make the mittens extra warm! These pictures are all pre-blocking, and the mittens are drying on my hearth now. I was chastised by Emmy for not blocking them, and so stuck them in the sink at the store for a few minutes. Now they are a little bit fuzzier, softer, and the stitches have come together. If only they would dry already!