Done

Done!  I'm going to take my chances that the recipient of these warm mittens will not be reading my blog until next week.

Now I've got to get some work done before returning to the Incognito Cowls.

One Bella Down

Today's knitting was uneventful.  No screaming kids, no talkers, just knitting.  I was able to complete one mitten (although this picture doesn't show it).

Having finished one, there are a few things that I will do differently with the next pair.  The opening bells out considerably. I understand that this is to accommodate the forearm, but I'm worried it will stretch out.  To fix this, I might cast on with US size 8's instead of 9's.

As other knitters mentioned in their reviews, the hand and thumbs are short.  I did add 2 rows in each of these.  The last 2 finishing rows of the thumb make it pointy.  If you're a nose picker, this point might be handy, but it's useless to me and I think it looks stupid.

The fabric created using a bulky yarn and a worsted-weight needle is tight and should be nice and warm this winter.

Winter Warmth

It may be months between posts on this blog, but that just means that I have been busy knitting! I keep saying to myself that I've got to download the pictures off my camera and onto the blog, but instead end up knitting more rows!

I quickly started and finished a hat for my son, but I wasn't thrilled with the way it looked on him. So, I started and finished another one, complete with mittens, that came out much better. He loves them!

The set is knit in Bernat Camouflage - his choice. Although it is not my choice of yarn to knit with, it has worn and washed well so far. I wrote my own pattern for the hat - rolled brim followed by a section of 2x2 ribbing. The remainder of the hat is stockinette stitch with evenly spaced decreasing rows at the crown. Instead of a pompom or tassel, I made 5 curly-Q's at the top (CO 15 stitches. BO all stitches). The mitten pattern is from "The Knitter's Handy Book of Patterns". I knit these with a tighter gauge for warmth and longer cuffs. My son does not like snow on his wrists (who does) but gets equally frustrated with bulky mittens tucked into his jacket sleeves. The two pattern changes made the perfect mittens for my little guy!