Date: Wed, 03 Dec 1997 11:28:42 -0800 From: "A. Karen Alfke" To: Knit@bolis.com Subject: Knit: Mitten Patt [...] [...] MITTEN PATT Some of you were kind enough to encourage me to post my mitten patt as soon as I got it de-bugged... so here it is! It's based on the "Kennebunk Mittens" from *Homespun, Handknit* (sorry, I forgot the name of designer of the originals). I changed the weight of the wool so I could use up some leftover Lamb's Pride. It's a simple K2P1 rib for the mitten, with an I-cord edging of Brown Sheep variegated. These are interchangeable, since they don't have a back or front to them. (That way they may wear more evenly, too!) They fit very well, expand to fit most hands (thanks to the rib), and look sort of elegant too (IMO) with their variegated adornment! This patt is my gift to the list for your personal use only; please write to me for copyright to use it in other ways. DUNNABUNK MITTENS* by Karen Alfke What you need: Maybe 100 g. worsted-weight wool (Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride comes out very nice indeed). A small amount of any coordinated variegated yarn you have on hand. Size 6 DPNs, or whatever size you need to make the stitch patt look nice Tapestry needle [The pattern is written to make a standard women's-size mitten. For extra width, you could start with 36 or 39 sts; for extra length, start decreasing for fingertips after the mitten covers the tip of the little finger of the recipient.] Abbreviations: M1: a twisted bar increase. Lift the strand between the 2 sts, twist once, and knit. M1P: a twisted bar increase, purled: Lift the strand between the sts, twist once, and purl. [See recent digests for discussions of twisting M1 Repeat for another 3 rounds. START THUMB GUSSET: Between the last (P) st on your #3 needle and the first (K) on the #1 needle, M1P. K2, M1P, P1, *K2,P1* repeat *to* to end of round. Knit sts as they appear for one full round. At end of row 7, M1 at end of needle #3 M1, P1, K2, P1, M1, P1, *K2,P1* repeat *to* to end of round. [At this point, you may pull the gusset sts (all those up to the first P st on needle #1) onto a separate needle, so you can better see what's going on w/ the gusset.] Knit sts as they appear for one full round. [What you are doing is M2sts every other round, keeping the integrity of the patt within the thumb gusset. The 2 P sts are the boundary between the hand and the thumb gusset, and the gusset grows out from there.] Repeat these two rounds, increasing in patt, until you have 15 sts for the thumb gusset. Then knit 9 more rounds in patt, ending w/ needle #3, just before the gusset sts. At this point, if you haven't already, put all the thumb sts onto a separate needle or a stitch holder. (There should be 15 between the last P on needle #3 and the first P on needle #1.) CONTINUE UP FINGER PORTION: Holding thumb sts down and away from other sts, CO 2 sts between needles #3 and #1, over thumb opening. (EZ's invisible cast-on works very well). [These replace the 2 K sts you took away to start the thumb gusset, remember?] These 2 new sts belong on needle #1 (they will both be K), and knit the rest of the round in patt. (You should have 33 sts again, each round starting w/ those K2.) Knit 22 rounds in K2P1 rib patt. (Or more, if the recipient has long fingers! Just knit up to the height of their little finger.) Perform your favorite toe decrease as for socks, or use mine: Redistribute those 33 sts onto 4 DPNs (needle #1 takes the extra st). At beginning of needle #1, K1, P2tog,*K2,P1* repeat *to* up to 3 sts from end of needle #2, P2tog,K1. At beginning of needle #3, P1, K2tog, P1, *K2,P1* *repeat *to* up to 3 sts from end of needle #4, K2tog, P1. Knit stitches of next round as they appear. [This establishes your decrease pattern: the first stitches of needles #1 and #3, and the last sts of needles #2 and #4, are knit as they appear. The sts to the 'inside' of each of those sts are decreased in patt, i.e. as the 3rd stitch over appears. This is how you maintain the rib while decreasing at the same time. Harder to describe than it is to do.] Decrease every other round until half the sts are gone (8 rounds), then start decreasing every row until you have only 8 sts left (this means you take care of that pesky 33rd st by decreasing one extra time on needle #1; I do this at the very end, at the top where it won't be as visible-- so I stop not at the beginning of the round but at the end of needle #1.) Cut yarn w/ an 8" tail, thread through a tapestry needle, and thread needle around through all sts twice, then sew in end. FINISH THUMB With a new end of yarn, pick up the 2 increased sts at bottom of fingers and knit rest of round in patt, dividing the 17 sts onto 3 DPNs. Stop before last stitch on last needle. [Now you need to decrease back down to 15 sts to keep in patt, so we'll get rid of those 2 picked-up sts by decreasing them into the thumb sts on either side.] Take the last st of the original 15 thumb sts and knit it tog w/ the first of the picked-up sts. Immediately knit the second picked-up st tog w/ the first of the original 15 thumb sts on other side of thumb. You should now have 15 sts again and can knit merrily away in patt up the thumb for 12 rounds or so (more if recipient has long thumbs!). Close top of thumb by K2tog all around (in patt if you can, not if it drives you crazy!) until you have 3 sts left. Cut yarn, thread through sts w/ tapestry needle as above, and sew in all ends. Phew! I-CORD EDGING Before you begin with the variegated yarn, cut yourself a healthy 16"-20" length of it (for sewing later). With a noddy or your favorite I-cord technique, make a 4-stitch I-cord 12"-15" long. DO NOT CUT YARN HERE. Close the I-cord with a safety pin and remove from noddy or needles. Sew the I-cord onto the bottom of the mitten, beginning at the thumb side. (I usually use the beginning tail end of the I-cord to start sewing, then thread in the extra length as I need it.) If you turn the mitten inside out first, and sew the I-cord only onto the inside loop of the edge st, you get a nice border along the bottom of the mitten. Make your way around the edge of the mitten, then continue for a second round, sewing the second round of I-cord onto the edge of the first. At the end of the second round, If you have too much I-cord, just take out the safety pin and unravel it down to where you need it; then sew through each of the four stitches, anchor them down, and sew in the end. Finish sewing in ends and then repeat for the other hand! (c)1997 A. Karen Alfke. This pattern is for individual use only and may be shared freely between knitters; this notice must be retained on any copies. It may not be reprinted in any commercial publication or used on any web site without written permission from the author. *I seem to remember that "doing a bunk" means 'running off' in either British or American slang... anyway, I couldn't resist the play on the original name! Sorry this went on so long. I want to be exhaustive for those new to mitten knitting, or knitting in general. It probably doesn't help that I have a German tendency to construct monolithic tendencies! ; ) [...] Best wishes to all of you for happy, stress-free knitting! A. Karen Alfke Port Townsend, WA akabini@olympus.net "I who from midnoon with convivial souls / Would sit carousing o'er Falernian bowls Now praise the frugal meal and sober glass, / With slumbers near a fountain, on the grass." -Horace --- This pattern downloaded from Wool Works: the online knitting compendium http://www.woolworks.org/