Misty Monday Morning Kit ~ mittens & cowl knitting pattern

~ Making your way to work when it's barely even light ~ Bundling into a frozen car, still in pjs, on the school run ~  Dragging yourself + kids + dogs to the park on a miserably drizzly morning ~

Ok, so it's not yet that cold here yet... But it's definitely getting there.  This winter kit knits up so fast that you won't even have time to feel the cold.  And using only 4 50g balls of Debbie Bliss Como (now discontinued so get it for around £3 a ball on eBay), we're talking unspeakable luxury for little more than £12.  I'll be keeping this set myself, but will definitely be making up a few more as Christmas gifts...

Mittens (make 2)

Size: Adult

Gauge: 10 stitches = 10cm/4"

2 x 50g balls Debbie Bliss Como, main colour (leftovers to be kept for neck-warmer)

1 x 50g ball Debbie Bliss Como, contrast colour

8mm DPNs

10mm DPNs

2 stitch markers

crochet hook (5-7mm)

yarn needle to sew in tails

Abbreviations

DPN - double pointed needle

MC - main colour

CC - contrast colour

CO - cast on

BO - bind off

st(s) - stitch(es)

k - knit

p - purl

rnd(s) - round(s)

rep - repeat

cont - continue

k2tog - knit 2 stitches together

SM - stitch marker

m1 - make 1 stitch

dec - decrease

Cuff & Thumb Gusset

Using 8mm DPNs and your CC, CO 20 sts, arrange over 3 needles (7 sts on 2 of the needles and 6 on the 3rd) and join to work in the round being careful not to twist your sts.

Work 6 rnd of k2 p2 ribbing.

next rnd: switch to MC and work a further 4 rnds of k2 p2 ribbing (10 rnds ribbed cuff).

rnd 11: switch to 10mm DPNs and knit, placing a SM in between the penultimate and last sts.

rnd 12: k1, place SM, knit to 1st SM  ~This is the set up for the thumb gusset.  If this is your first time knitting mittens, this might all sound a little scary.  It's really not - watch this tutorial before continuing to get a visual of the process~ m1 after 1st SM and again before 2nd SM.

next rnd: knit.

You will be increasing sts like this just inside of each SM to create the thumb gusset every other rnd, knitting the alternating rnds.  Cont until gusset has 10 sts.  Slip these 10 sts onto a piece of scrap yarn.

Main Body

CO 2 sts using the thumb technique onto the last needle in the rnd and join mitten, continuing with the 20 sts originally cast on.

Knit 13 rnds (or more depending on length of fingers - but you need to leave a generous inch to decrease), then dec like this:

*k2, k2tog* rep for rest of rnd.

next rnd: knit.

next rnd: *k1, k2tog* rep for rest of rnd.

next rnd: knit.

Cont until you have 10 sts remaining. Close the mitten using the Kitchener Stitch.

Thumb

Pick up 14 sts - the 10 held by the scrap yarn and 4 more to close the gap. Knit one rnd, and on the 2nd rnd, dec 4 sts by k2tog evenly spaced along the inside of the thumb - decreased sts on the outside will be visibly and make the thumb look a little odd.

Knit 4 rnds (or more depending on thumb length).

next rnd: k2tog to end.

next rnd: knit.

Cut yarn and thread onto a yarn needle.  Slip off rem 5 sts onto needle (purlwise) and pull tight. 

Weave in all loose ends.

Make a crochet loop to attach to cuff to hang mittens (optional, but if you do - chain 20).

Neck-Warmer

less than 1 50g ball Debbie Bliss Como, main colour leftover from mittens

just under 2 50g ball Debbi Bliss Como, contrast colour leftover from mittens cuff

8mm DPNs

10mm circular needle (or DPNs)

yarn needle to sew in tails

Using 8mm DPNs and MC, CO 60 sts, arrange over 3 needles (20 on each) and join to work in the round being careful not to twist your sts.

Work 5 rnds of k2 p2 ribbing. 

rnd 6: switch to CC and cont in k2 p2 rib for a further 2 rnds.

rnd 9: switch to 10mm needles and knit in stockinette st until you've almost used up your CC yarn - leaving enough to switch back to your 8mm DPNs for 2 rnds of k2 p2 ribbing.  Switch back to your MC yarn and work 5 rnds k2 p2 rib, and cast off.

Weave in loose ends.  Done!

Keep this kit by your front door and forget numb fingertips and chills down your spine (the cold ones at least!).

WIPs

With Christmas little more than 9 weeks away, I'm already starting to feel the pressure...  And in order to keep on top of my personal projects//private commissions//present making, I seem to be making a start on everything all at once, to be worked on bit by bit on rotation, surrounding myself with the beginnings of everything I need to have done by Christmas, just so my work load can make sense to me visually.  

Herewith a little handful of my Works In Progress...

Practising piecing hexagons for a very special project that I'm keeping quiet for the time being...

Notes on a hat I've been promising my Mum since last Christmas.

The most deliciously soft beginnings of Pickles' Close Cables Sweater (for me!).

Inside view of my Swing Jacket.  Let's face it, we're talking extreme procrastination here.  All that's left to do is hand stitch the lining and sew on the buttons.  An evening's work.  I would argue that my lack of a mannequin in my life is making accurate pinning of the lining harder than it needs to be, but today my lovely neighbour Jess lent me hers.  And she needs it back soon, so no more excuses!

Some I-cord piping for a Christmassy tutorial coming soon...

And lastly, my floor this evening: hot cocoa and a chunky mitten - because my hands were freezing today, and then I thought it would be nice to prepare a quick winter warmer kit pattern (coming soon too).

~

Tip of the iceberg...

Preparing for Autumn ~ part I

Amidst all the Summer sewing I've been doing recently, my evenings are starting to be spent preparing for the colder months to come... 

the beginnings of my Go Vest from Pickles

These days I like to get a bit of a head-start on a season.  That way I can really take my time with a project and enjoy the process, especially the big or ambitious ones, spending long evenings taking care over my stitching, and actually getting to enjoy my finished piece for longer.  I learned this the hard way - casting on for a jumper or blanket in the depth of Winter, only to run out of steam halfway through as the days began to warm up.  In fact, I can think of two such jumpers and one such blanket still incomplete hibernating somewhere at the bottom of one stash or another.  So this year I have put my list-making mania to good use and settled on a handful of wintry projects that have been on my mind for a while, which I now seem to have suddenly gathered the perfect materials for.

1.  Go Vest - pattern from Pickles, one of my all-time favourite knitting blogs.  These guys make me want to move to Norway.  For this cardi I'm using the cherry red baby Alpaca yarn I bought from Loop at Jane Brocket's book launch.  

2.  Herringbone Stitch Cowl - pattern from Purlbee, my other all-time favourite crafting blog.  This is something I've wanted to make for ages, but it calls for a lot of yarn...  Then the other day my lovely neighbour friend (Prom Dress Jess) gave me a Maxmara cardi she was throwing out - horrible shape but delicious yarn - so now I'm in the process of unravelling it...

the unwanted Maxmara cardi...

unravelling...

3.  Three pairs of Elfin Slippers - tutorial from Maya*Made.  So far I have picked out the colours for the uppers and linings from some old cut up cashmere jumpers to make a minty-green pair for the little boy, a navy pair for the Papa, and a red pair for me, la Mama.  These have been washed and shrunk to create a denser and sturdier fabric which will be easy to cut and sew, and will be a lot more durable than an un-shrunk cashmere jumper.  Now I need to have a rummage through my leathers to find some soft suede for the soles.

4.  A Swing Jacket - Butterick 5222 vintage pattern.  I've been wanting to make this jacket for years, and being an unprinted pattern, the only thing stopping me before was my lack of sewing confidence.  I am now raring to go with this, and I am also very happy to be slicing up and giving a new lease of life to my very old, very loved, and now very decrepit bordeaux wool cape.  For added yum, I plan to line this with the same nude silk crepe I used for my Silk Sorbetto... oh, YES.

my cape, soon to be swing

5.  As the days start getting colder - two pairs of Snowy Mittens - pattern still to develop.  Using some Debbie Bliss Como I bought last winter, in duck egg blue and stone, I'm planning to make some adult sized mittens with a simple fairisle cuff.  If I'm happy with the pattern, I will of course publish it here!

There.  So I reckon I have plenty to keep busy with, and no doubt some other things will manage to sneak themselves into my lists... They always do.