"Nuttin but knittin" - that says it all, with an occasional deviation into the real world.

Saturday, September 29, 2007

Turning Mittens....

Into Glittens:
I have had several people write me asking how I make my "glittens". As I made this pair, I took photos (sorry - I am not much of a photographer) and will try to give you more information.

First, I make mittens. Where I want them to open up for the glove part, I knit across with one row of contrasting waste yarn. Notice the tan row on the palm side of the mitten on the right.

I remove that waste yarn, putting the live stitches back on needles.
On the "mitt" side, I work 3 rows of ribbing and then bind off, making sure that I leave a long length of yarn at the start and that I have the same on the other end after binding off. These ends will be used later.
Then I cast on stitches (leaving a long length for sewing later on) and knit the glove and finger part in the round
I like to make the fingers each a different color, leaving sufficient yarn to gather up any gaps that might develop between the fingers.
When the glove section is completed, I put it on, and whip stitch the cast on edge into the color strandings on the back of the mitten, making sure that I don't go all the way thru - which would create havoc with the colorwork pattern on the "good side" of the mitten.
Then with the two ends hanging off the ribbing, I securely tack down the edge of the ribbing to the mitten.Thats it!!
This is the 27th pair that I have made. The only problem I see is that people like them so much, I get requests for them all the time. Sometimes I am in the mood to make them...sometimes not so much!! The color stranding and double thickness make them extremely warm and practical (if not too fashionable!!).

Some are made with gauntlets that really keep the wind out of your sleeves. Those are my favorite, but some folks prefer regular cuffs. The current pair is for a man, hence the darker colors and the ribbed cuff. I plan to make a hat with the same yarns. This yarn is Cascade 220 Superwash. My normal yarn is Dale of Norway Heilo - which is a DK weight yarn.
If anyone wants any more details, stitch counts, that type of thing, let me know. I really don't have a written out pattern, but I can share my basic guidelines with you. The very first pair I ever made came from an old knitter's magazine. But, I have made so many modifications and changes over the years, the current version is far from the original. Hope that answers the questions that some of you had, and that I have not bored everyone else to death.

Now - I have one more mitten to make into a glitten.... catch ya later..... K

11 comments:

marol culligan said...

This has been REALLY REALLY useful! Thanks so much for sharing!!!

Anonymous said...

I have been searching all over for this pattern. I'm a fairly experienced knitter but coming from FL, this wooly warm stuff is new to me. I want to make my son a helmet liner and thought the addition of glittens would make it a truely special gift from home. Since he is in Afghanistan, I'm rather limited to plain colors but my specialty is cables, so it can be fancy drab 8-> Thank you so much. Will try to figure out how to send you a photo when done.Blessings, Mari from TN

Anonymous said...

Glittens: This is just what I've been looking for, but didn't know what to call them. They look much warmer than the "convertible mittens" my grandchildrn are wearing, and even those were purchased because I couldn't find a good pattern. These will keep us warm in cold Wisconsin.
Thanks, Susan

misun ♥ said...

Thank you! This was so much help!

Pachie said...

do you have a pattern
mochibean@gmail.com

Anonymous said...

Thank you so much, very grateful for the clear and intuitive way you wrote your pattern and for the pictures!

Only - I must ask, what in the world is a gusset and how do I make one for the thumbs?? I have been google-ing it for a half hour and can only find vague references. My stitch-n-bit@# doesn't describe it. Help!

Veronica (Australia) said...

I came across your pattern, exactly what I have been looking for to make for my grandchildren. Will definitely be giving it a go, thank you

Anonymous said...

I have a pair made from another pattern, as far as taking off the scrap yarn, but don't understand these instructions. I think yours are much better. My pattern does not have individual fingers knit. Do you have a pattern that is mittens, not gloves? Your instructions are great! Thanks

Laura said...

I have no idea if you still check this, but this pattern is amazing! I was feeling ambitious (christmas present for my boyfriend) and decided to do your pattern for glittens though I have never used DP needles. So far so good. Your instructions are clear. Just wondering, could you post the charts you used for the men's gloves? It's an awesome pattern and I don't want to guess and mess it up.thank you for the great pattern!!!

Anonymous said...

Hi, great pattern and instructions. Can i just ask would you block the mittens before turning them into glittens or after? Thanks

Jaki said...

Thanks for posting this! It's great pattern, and I love all your color and pattern variations.