Got You Covered
Except for darning in the yarn ends and blocking, my not-yellow mittens are done:
Pattern: Mitered Mittens by Elizabeth Zimmermann - the May project in Knitter’s Almanac
If you’ve never knit this brilliant design, you are basically making two large chevrons by increasing and decreasing simultaneously on every other round.
Yarn: Knit Picks Bare Superwash DK (less than 1 skein), dyed with turmeric
Needles: Bryspun, 5-inch, #3 double-points
Observations: The only thing I changed this time, was to work the thumb over 17 stitches instead of the 15 stitches recommended in the pattern. Oh, and I also worked the hand decreases until there were 12 stitches left; I think the pattern says something slightly different.
There are several things I’ll do differently on the next pair.
- I’ll most likely eliminate the ribbing at the cuff. I don’t like the look. I think I’ll work the cuff, or at least the first 2 inches or so, in a smaller needle so it’s a bit more fitted.
- I will almost certainly add 1 stitch between each of the decreases (i.e., at the end of ndl #1 and ndl #3) to prevent the gap between the decreases.
- Because there is no thumb gusset, there’s quite a bit of stress on the palm side near the thumb.
I’m toying with the idea of increasing by 4 stitches (one on each needle) on the round in which I place the waste yarn to try and reduce the stress. The 4 stitches could be decreased on the next round. More likely, I’ll eliminate the decreases on the waste-yarn round and just work the increases. That might look cleaner, especially if I add that extra stitch between the decreases.
The back looks quite nice, though:
All in all, the mittens were a very fast and satisfying knit. I’m glad I made the cuff a little long, but the hand is a bit too large for me. Of course, that’s easily adjusted now that I have an idea of how the pattern works.
If you’re wondering what’s in the bucket in the photo, stay tuned.
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Susan | knitting, mittens
Beautiful mittens, and love the way you’ve written up the details. I like the length of the mittens—long enough to cover the gap that always seems to appear above the wrist and below the coat sleeve.
Those mittens look great! EZ does it again, and thanks for your insights into pattern mods.
Very cool mittens - thanks for writing about your modification ideas.
You are the cleverest! I love reading about your planned mods.
Very fun mittens. I am just loving knitting the BSJ. EZ is amazing, but I think you are too. Like Heather, I really enjoy your thinking aloud about how you would change things and improve them.
I love the mittens!!! So pretty!
Very nice! Love the (not yellow) color!
walnuts. . .?
Passionfruit?
C’mon folks, say it after me: yellow, yellow, yellow!
They turned out great and I’ll be looking forward to the next pair to see how they turn out, too.
Looks good. I’m interested to see the problem solving in the next pair (paired photos?)
LOVE those YELLOW mittens!! What a neat design!
Those are great. And I’ll bet the next pair won’t be yellow.
What a really neat shape. Lovely work as always!
The mittens are gorgeous! I have seen that pattern in EZ’s book, but didn’t realize how pretty they were/are until now. I am going to try to make a pair, too. Thanks for the inspiration!
Those look fantastic! I have that book. I’m going to check it out.
…baby beets?
The mittens are very cool. And so not um not yellow?
Hey, Susan! I just finished a pair of those!! I knit a short row or two over a half-dozen or so stitches on the “center side” of the thumb to try and relieve the stress on the middle and it seemed to work. It’s not perfect, but there is definitely less stress. I might try it another way next time. It’s fun to play around with and I always think that EZ would approve — even cheer! Can you imagine the brainstorming of problems and solutions and alternatives that would occur in a knitting circle of which she was a part?
I knit a garter stitch cuff and liked it. I used the waste yarn trick for the thumb opening and my thumb lies at an angle across the body of the mitten and allows for an anatomical fit which didn’t require extra ease. These mittens are the perfect companion to EZ’s Ganomy hat with its similar mitered shaping.