Sometime Sunday night I realized that this past weekend was the first since, oh I don’t know, SEPTEMBER that I didn’t have any obligations. I worked maybe a total of an hour and the rest of the time was blissfully my own.
There was some food shopping (which I abhor) but the rest of the time I knit!
Front of Right Mitten
I started my Bird In Hand Mittens Friday night, first casting on with 4s. Then 3s. And finally settling in with 2s. The first two needles sizes gave me a HUGE picot edge and I decided that there was no way I could down below 2s. In fact, I told myself if I needed to go back up for the colorwork that would be okay. Surprisingly, the 2s are working perfectly!
Front of Right Mitten Closeup
I ended up going with the last picture in the last entry – the blue that is probably closest to the brown in heathery-ness. I actually tried a couple of rows with the top blue, but I wasn’t loving it and when I consulted with Georgie, he picked the bottom blue. So far so good!
Back of Right Mitten
I’ve tried to remain very conscious of my floats and spreading the stitches out as I go along and I’m very pleased with my results. I think my stitches look incredibly even and my floats are all at a similar tension and MAN these gloves are thick! It’s almost like they’re felted! They are going to be SUPER warm. They fit just fine on my hand – not too tight, not too loose and I’m loving watching the colorwork unfold. I managed to knit a couple rows past the thumb gusset. I think my plan is to finish the first mitten, then knit the second mitten, then GO BACK and do the thumbs. This way whatever I do on the first will be fresh in my mind on the second.
Back of Right Mitten Closeup
Also, I don’t miss the braid at all! I think the cuff looks lovely with Alice’s mods.
I did NOT neglect Oblique! (Although I was sorely tempted!) I’m in the midst of raglan decreases and I hope to have the back finished very shortly – maybe even tonight! As is my usual way, I’ll be casting on both fronts as soon as I’m done the back.
Two wonderful projects! What could be better than that? Thanks for your input on the mittens – I hope my choice doesn’t disappoint.
No disappointment here…it’s gorgeous. You’re so much better at colorwork than I am! LOVE IT!
Great color choices (Georgie’s taste rocks, but then you knew that. Sigh. :-)_) and super even knitting tension. Glad it was such a great weekend for you. Blue skies!
They’re looking wonderful! This pattern is tempting me to try some colourwork.
Lovely mittens, Cara–very inspiring–they may creep up my to do list! Glad you had a good weekend.
ooh, those are gorgeous. and you picked my favorite color combo too! I am seriously feeling the urge to go get the pattern and some cascade 220 right now.
I just bought some cascade for a pair of these, too – heathery brown and a grassy green. They’ll have to wait until a few other smaller projects are finished up. I love your color combo. I’m interested to see what you have planned for the thumbs – I keep reading that they’re a little on the long side.
I really love the colors! It looks like a winter night.
I read a tip on Ravelry to do the embroidery before closing up the thumb; I wish I had been smart enough to think of that myself! Trying to get a needle up the thumb without catching on floats was quite the challenge.
Those look fabulous! I love the colors together! I might have to suck it up and try some colorwork to get myself a pair!!
They look great!
Perfect color combination. Good decision on the thumbs, too. When I knitted my mittens for the Soaring Eagles project I left all the thumbs after the first pair until the end, when I had a thumb party. Worked great.
Lovely mittens! Browns and blues are my favorites. Glad you had a weekend for you as well! 🙂
Those are *lovely*!!! I love the colours you’ve chosen, and the knitting looks perfect. 🙂
What could be disappointing about such a pretty mitten? It’s beautiful, Cara! I’ve yet to complete a pair of colorwork mittens for myself, but Katie has the “North Star” pair I made (in which I ADDED the braid – heh, that’s one of the things I like about knitting, we can all do the same thing, but different) — I think I used Lamb’s Pride Worsted — and they are so super-duper warm! I think they actually do felt a little bit when you wear them, too. Not that I have personal experience… yet.
XO
I was in the camp that voted for the top blue, but I must say that I really like the combination you picked. It’s working!
I completed my first mitten over the weekend and love it, but next time around I’m definitely omitting the braid. It looks nice, but boy, were those long rounds!
Lovely mittens! Glad you’re feeling like knitting these days.
Have the prizes been awarded yet? Just wanted to make sure I didn’t miss a post.
Tammy
I’ve been seeing these mittens around more and more and I’m becoming obsessed with them. I think I’m going to have to knit them since I am sure to get lots of use out of them while I’m living in Florida :-P.
Your color choices are just beautiful and the mittens look lovely. Thanks for posting photos of them. It just fueled my obsession a bit more.
I didn’t weigh in, but you picked the combination that I liked best. They look lovely. And I’ll reiterate what Carla said, embroider, then do thumb decreases.
I am incredibly in love with those mittens!!!!
wow! your mittens are so inspiring. i love the color combination.
Lovely mittens- Love the colour choice. Blue and brown… my favorite.
Yay, knitting! Welcome back to the dark side…
yes. I love them dearly—-
already downloaded the pattern— but have to finish cleaning and wrapping before i can cast on 🙁
beautiful!! i love the mitts! too cute!
Disappoint? Don’t be silly. They are almost too beautiful to get as worn and dirty as mittens tend to get. Can’t wait to see the finished objects!
They’re looking great! Often you can tell a great deal more once you’re knitting about how well the colors play together. Certainly we’d trust your judgment on such a thing. After all, you’ll be the one wearing the mittens! (I presume)
I’m so excited about this pattern. It’ll be January knitting for me, if plans don’t change. I’m thinking about purple and grey.
They look amazing. I liked them before when I saw them but in these colors I really love them. Blue/brown combos get me everytime.
GREAT color combo! I didn’t miss the braids in mine either… mostly because I know it would have added hours to my knitting time 😉
That’s an awesome color combination, and I don’t think I would have ever put them together myself. Thanks for the inspiration!
So beautiful. Wow.
Beautiful. I love seeing all the various color choices around. Very cool.
I just picked out colors for my mittens a few days ago…I went with a deep, dark chocolaty brown and a heathery orange. You are inspiring me to cast on NOW, but I’ve got to finish up my Dad’s afghan!
Oh man, I LOVE those colors. And as much as I can’t handle the multi-color knitting, those mitts are just about at the tipping point to make me cave. As in, I hear a siren song wheedling, “They’re only TWO colors…” AUGH! Life was so much easier when I could just say, NAH! I don’t Fair Isle! and look away!
Wow….I really love the brown and blue together. The brown makes the blue pop! Nicely done!
My only problem with your mittens is now I want to make a pair! They are gorgeous. I hope you have a wonderful holiday season.
Lovely color combination.
I used to do a lot of two color knitting and found that if I arranged the knitting so that the strands were on the outside (it’s hard to describe, but basically you are knitting on the inside of the circle of needles) the strands handle themselves better.
Picture a soup can. Normally we knit with the right side on the outside, like the label. But, then all the little strands are on the inside of the can, like they’re trying to make a smaller circumference than the label.
If you could turn the can inside out, still knitting on the label side of the can, then the little strands are outside the can and cannot collapse into the inner circle. It makes it easier to control tension.
Your mittens are lovely—what gauge are you getting? Are you holding a color in each hand or holding both colors in one hand? I’m knitting these mittens with Paton’s Classic Wool on size three needles. I’m getting 7 sts. per inch. My background color is a dark egg plant, and the pattern color is pea green. I opted for the braid—I took a class from Nancy Bush years ago at Stitches and I’ve used it a few times since then.
I’m loving the mittens! I think you chose the right blue, I was leaning towards the last one. The colors go together so perfectly!
I love those colors, just beautiful!
Those colors are beauties! Fantastic job with the stranding too!
I love, love, LOVE these colors. Go, Cara, go.
You inspire me to knit for myself. At least I know the recipient will appreciate the effort and art.
You inspire me to knit for myself. At least I know the recipient will appreciate the effort and art.
How could such beauty disappoint? So inspiring–Thanks for the closeups of the details.
The mitten looks fabulous! The colors go perfect together! Nice to see you enjoying your knitting again!
Wow, that is a pretty mitt. I like the colors you chose. I just got a mitten book, so mittens have been on my mind too. I am thinking of ringing in 2008 with a mitten project 😉
Great combo, and the floats look GREAT.
These are gorgeous! Since I’ve been living under a rock I hadn’t seen them before!
The mittens are lovely! I bought the pattern myself, but haven’t tackled them yet. I have done just a speck of color work, and I’m fearful. I also had surgery on my left hand in November. I think these will wait until next year for me. Yours are just beautiful! What a lovely color combo!