Wednesday, February 11, 2015

fo: Fingerless Mitts for Mom

AKA the LAST of my 2014 Christmas gifts.

Fingerless Mitts for Mom
Yes, those are pj pants with little skier on them.  It's been too cold to ski lately, so I am living vicariously though my pj's.  Plus they're warm and my house is cold, I'm not changing into real pants today.
If you remember, I was trying to get these done for my Mom, but I ran out of time.  She got a box with a picture of the mitts, a swatch, and an IOU.  She reported back immediately that she loves her 'thumb warmer' and has been hounding me (politely and ever so subtly) ever since for her mitts.

Until recently. 

As Mothers will, she wasn't above using guilt and told me about how her current fabric mitts are held together with duct tape, and she couldn't wait to show off her brand new mitts to all the ladies at work.

'Okay Mom, I got it.  I'm sorry Mom.  Yes I love you too, I promise I'm working on them.  Yes right now, I'm putting down everything else.  I'll have them sent off by the end of this week.  No I promise.'

Guilt works.

Fingerless Mitts for Mom
Pattern: Toast and Jam by Emily Foden.
Yarn: Nova's Earth Collection Alpaca Peru Natural in Smoke.

I made a couple of modifications, mostly by adding length, but I altered the palm garter stitches a bit.  I've explained it on my Ravelry project page if you're interested.

This yarn was lovely to use and wonderful to wear.  I like it so much that I bought a couple more skeins to make up Cedar Glen mitts for the Holla Knits KAL.

Fingerless Mitts for Mom
Haha crotch shot!  I'm sorry guys, this wasn't my classiest photo shoot. :)
Back to Toast and Jam.  I'm impressed with this entire design.  The thumb gusset is really neatly done and the garter stitch palm squishes that section down lower than the back of the hand so that your fingers have full range of mobility but are still covered over the knuckles.


Fingerless Mitts for Mom

Fingerless Mitts for Mom
The thumbs are very snug, but this is actually a good thing.  It keeps the thumb covering low on the digit, giving you full use of your thumb, and keeps the entire mitt on securely.

And now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to get these in the mail with the hopes that they arrive early next week.  Because dammit if I didn't get these finished TWO DAYS EARLIER than I promised my Mom!

Well, promised this time.  Because I think my IOU claimed sometime in January.  Oops.  Love you Mom!

7 comments:

  1. Those are stellar!! I love how long they are. Hmm, must encourage adult children to take up knitting...

    ReplyDelete
  2. I'm digging the design of those mitts. Shame you have to give them up, right? ;-) I just learned that the cabled earflap hat I sent my sister last week finally arrived. Not sure what took so long, since she's just a three-hour drive from here--it would have been faster for me to deliver it in person, but oh well. I can't really complain when she asked for it in mid-November, I didn't start until January, and only finished it a week ago. It's still cold outside, so that means it's not truly late...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'd be tempted to make a pair myself, but I don't think I can handle more twisted rib right now - need a break!

      Good job, getting the hat to your sister before spring. I call that a win in my books! ;)

      Delete
  3. They look seriously awesome! Would you recommend this pattern to a noob knitter? I've made scarfs and a beanie in the past on circular needles but it was ages ago. I really want some fingerless gloves for winter though!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Aw man, I'm sorry, I just noticed your question. :( This pattern isn't too hard, the twisted rib is just difficult. The pattern is really clear and easy to follow, so if you're comfortable with knits, purls, increases and decreases, you'll probably be fine. There's a few harder stitches for dealing with the twisted rib (twisted just means that the knits are done through the back leg of the loop instead of the front leg of the loop), but it the pattern does explain it. I don't know, you might want to try an easier pattern first, but I don't think these are impossible.

      Delete
  4. They look great! That is a LOT of twisted rib though I can see why you want a break!

    ReplyDelete