- 4th July 2024
Monet Minis, Water Lily Mittens
We started letterbox mini skein sets last year with a series based on William Morris designs and as Louise has a penchant for alliteration these became Morris Minors after the much loved British car. Naturally the latest series inspired by Monet have become Monet Minis and we obviously had to include at least one set based on his famous water lily series.
As a joint effort we made a pair of embroidered mittens inspired by the water lily image and if you fancy making your own pair here are the instructions. It’s not a tested pattern as we have only made the one pair, but a recipe for a knitter with a little experience.
Monet Mittens
Pattern Notes:
To achieve a watery effect the green and blue skeins are used fairly randomly, fading from one to the other. To knit a fade you can either knit a number of rounds alternating the two colours you want to blend or fade the two colours by knitting random rounds of each colour eg. 2 rounds colour A, 1 round B, 1 round A, 3 rounds B etc. The second method makes the blending of the colours harder to spot as your eye doesn’t pick up the ‘pattern’ that alternating rounds forms.
We’ve given an approximation of the round number where the changes take place, but you can vary them as you like. When Louise knitted the second mitten she changed the number of rounds and position of the colour changes slightly.
For the I-cord Cast-off the following tutorials are very good
https://www.interweave.com/article/knitting/i-cord-bind-off/
Size
Finished Circumference 18cm / 7 in to fit a medium sized women’s hand of 19cm / 7 in
Yarn
One pack of Ainsworth & Prin Water Lily Classic Sock Minis Skeins (80% Superwash Merino, 20% Nylon; 5x20g / 73m)
Needles and Notions
1 set of 2.25mm double-pointed needles (DPNs), or your preferred needles for working small circumferences in the round.
stitch marker
smooth waste yarn
tapestry needle for weaving in ends and embroidery
Tension
30 sts and 50 rounds to 10 cm / 4″ worked over stocking stitch, measured after blocking. You may need smaller or larger needles to match tension.
Abbreviations
** repeat as described
cm: centimetre/s
Inc/‘d: Increase/d
k: knit
k2tog: knit 2 stitches together (1 st decreased)
tbl: knit through back of loop
p: purl
St/s: stitch/es
Right Hand Mitten
Cuff
With solid green yarn (colour A), using the long-tail method, cast on 58 sts and divide the sts evenly between the needles. Place marker and join for working in the round, being careful not to twist cast-on edge.
Rib round: K1tbl, p1, to end of round.
Work the rib round a further 12 times, then join in the variegated dark green yarn (colour B) fade the two green yarns together for a total of 22 rounds of twisted rib.
Change to stocking stitch and knit 9 rounds fadeing the two colours.
Cut colour A leaving a long tail and knit 8 rounds in colour B.
Join in the mid blue-green (colour C) and working with colour B and colour C fade the two colours together over the next 9 rounds.
Cut colour B leaving a long tail and knit 8 rounds in colour C.
Thumb Placement
Round 34: K3, using the waste yarn k10, slip stitches just worked back to the left-hand needle, then knit to end of round using your working yarn. You have 10 sts of waste yarn in your fabric. After completing the main body of the mitten you will return these stitches to the needles, unpick the waste yarn and work an ‘afterthought’ thumb.
Knit 34 rounds with colour C, fading in the pale blue yarn (colour D), in the same manner as above.
Cast off all stitches in the pale blue yarn using the I-cord Cast-off method.
Thumb
With 2.25mm needles Pick up the 10 sts either side of the waste yarn. Carefully unpick the waste yarn making sure you have all the stitches on the needles.
Using the mid blue-green, knit along lower 10 sts, pick up and knit 2 sts in the gap, knit along upper 10 sts, pick up and knit 2 sts in the gap. 24 sts.
Arrange the sts to work in the round, place marker for start of round.
Knit 10 rounds.
Cast off all stitches using the I-cord Cast-off method.
Left Hand Mitten
Work as for Right Hand Mitten to *
Thumb Placement
Round 34: K45, using waste yarn k10, slip stitches just worked back to the left-hand needle, then knit to end of round using your working yarn.
Continue as for Right Hand Mitten from **
Finishing
Weave in all ends and join the I-cord on the mitten thumbs and top edges.
Embroidering the Mittens
Work the stitches loosely so there there is still stretch in the mitten. If you think you are going to sew too tightly or, disastrously, sew one side of the mitten to the other draw around the mitten on to corrugated card. Cut about 0.5cm / ¼ inside this line and slip the template into the mitten, then start your embroidery.
Work the embroidery stitches through a hole in the fabric and try not to split the yarn, then fasten the thread by weaving the needle in and out of the yarn on the underside of the mitten, again, don’t pull to tightly.
Thread your tapestry needle with the solid green yarn and embroider wavy lines of stem stitch vertically from the I-cord edge to about halfway down the mitten to represent willow branches. Work further branches to fill about 1/3rd to 1/2 the mitten. The branches are worked in mirror image on the outside edge of each hand.
Work horizontal wavy lines of stem stitch on across the back of each mitten hand then change to the variegated dark green yarn and work two or three more lines.
For the lilies cut lengths of pink yarn with a good variety of shades of pink. Make random straight stitches radiating from a central knitted stitch or from a single column of stitches. Don’t carry the yarn too far and fasten off each lily if necessary before starting the next one.
And that’s it, rather special, but very simple mittens.
