December 1st is here! Winter temperatures have finally hit Philadelphia, and we’re delighted to have a new pile of mittens to choose from when braving the colder temperatures.
The December Mittens are built for warmth, durability and comfort. Inspired by traditional gansey patterning, the cuff of the mitten begins with a Channel Island Cast On, a traditional, firm cast on with slight texture that is commonplace in many Gansey deisgns.
The top of the hand is worked in a traditional gansey pattern, and the palm utilizes a texturized broken ribbing. Much like the original gansey garments, these mittens are worked at a slightly denser gauge, which provides a nice, structured fabric on both front and back.
I originally envisioned the mittens in Derwentwater, as navy is a traditional color of ganseys, but when we received our new Cumbria Fingering colors for fall, I knew the final sample had to be made in the new mid-tone blue, Coniston.
SPECIFICATIONS
YARN: The Fibre Co. Cumbria Fingering: Coniston, 1 skein.
GAUGE: 30 sts + 48 rnds = 4” (10 cm) in broken rib pattern, after blocking.
NEEDLES:
1 – set US 1 (2.25 mm) dpns.
NOTIONS: Stitch marker, tapestry needle.
SIZE: 10.75” (27.25 cm) total length, 8.25” (21 cm) circumference.
SKILLS: Working knit/purl patterning from charts, Channel Island Cast-On.
USEFUL TIPS:
• For a tutorial on the Channel Island Cast On, visit our tips and tricks here.
• For a tutorial on working from charts, visit our Charts Series here.
• For a tutorial on cabling without a cable needle, visit our tips and tricks here.
• For a tutorial on picking up stitches from waste yarn to work the mitten thumb, visit our tips and tricks here.
You can buy the individual pattern via our pattern page here, or on Ravelry here. If you are a subscriber to the full year of patterns, your update notification should be waiting for you in your inbox!
