I made these fingerless mitts in thanks for a box of mystery wool. I was the lucky recipient of a box of super bulky yarn and a mix of brightly-coloured fleece. A friend of a friend gave it to me and thinks it may have originated with family in Poland. I think these mitts should make it a fair trade! I’m really happy with how they turned out – delicate and feminine with their buttoned lace cuffs.

The pattern is Veyla by Ysolda Teague and I used Berroco Ultra Alpaca Fine in Pitch Black. I love the yarn and I should have enough leftover for another project. Something soft and lightweight!

[Photos courtesy of Chris]

[Ravelled]

I’m almost at the end of my holiday knitting, which is good since I leave for Vancouver tomorrow morning! Hints were dropped for a muff, so I decided on a slightly modified version of Cirilia Rose’s Hanne. I’m not sure if it was the stitch pattern or me but I ended up with the wrong stitch count two times. Not a believer in third time lucky, I switched to a similarly shaped stitch from Barbara G. Walker’s A Treasury of Knitting Patterns (Powder Puff on pg. 136). It was a fun project to make. There was some assembly required – it’s knit in two separate layers, then padded with batting and secured with running stitches to anchor all three layers.

These are Those Mitts by Leslie Friend. This pattern, along with other great ones (hello, toast and toasty!), is available as a free download in her blog sidebar. I can see why this is her “go-to” pattern for mitts. I love them!

I used Mission Falls 1824 wool in Raven for both the muff and mitts. Can’t get enough!

[Muff photos courtesy of Chris]

[Ravelled Hanne Muff; Ravelled Those Mitts]

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving! We celebrated by eating pumpkin and squash in various incarnations – pumpkin waffles, squash soup, squash lasagna and of course, pumpkin pie – and taking a walk through the beautiful Thornton Bales King Trail. I wasn’t prepared for the 5-degree drop in temperature just north of Toronto, and had to fight the urge to wear my latest FO on the trail, the cozy, merino Fetching Mitts (intended as a gift).

Fetching is another pattern by Cheryl Niamath, available for free on Knitty, Summer 2006. The pattern is extremely popular (12,268 projects currently on ravelry), but it only occurred to me to make them now. I’m already planning my next pair! They’re so sweet with the cables at the wrists and picot bind off.

[Ravelled]

Last week’s post got me to thinking about more stash-busting projects. Patterns that would make great holiday knitting with the added bonus of using up small amounts of yarn. I took a trip through ravelry and came back with these great patterns.  Some of them old favourites, some of them new (at least to me!):

Fetching (L, courtesy of Knitty) and Emerald Fingerless Mittens

Fingerless Mitts

CanCans by Erica Lomax

Upp by Védís Jónsdóttir (from Einband, available from Schoolhouse Press)

Fetching and Dashing by Cheryl Niamath

Purl Beret (L, courtesy of the purl bee) and #24 Lace Beret (courtesy of Vogue Knitting, Holiday 2009)

Hats

#24 Lace Beret by Kate Gagnon Osborn

Purl Beret by The Purl Bee

Ripley by Ysolda Teague

Herringbone Cowl (courtesy of Lauren Osborne, Hungry Knitter)

Cowls

Herringbone Cowl by Lauren Osborne

sev[en]circle by Kirsten Johnstone (free ravelry download, login required)

Cabled Cowl by by Olga Buraya-Kefelian

mara (courtesy of madelinetosh)

Shawls and Other Shoulder Warmers

DROPS 108-53 by DROPS design

shadow[]box by Alison Brookbanks

mara by Madelinetosh

Otto (actually, I like to call her Churchill)

Toys

Otto by Ysolda Teague (or any of Ysolda’s toy patterns, really)

Pile-able Pups by Anna Hrachovec

Rotary Dial Telephone by Katie Park

My bear knit for the Mother Bear Project

Charity Knitting

Good for stash-busting anytime of year, but especially now in colder climates like mine…

afghans for Afghans sends handknit and crocheted blankets, sweaters, vests, hats, mittens and socks to the people of Afghanistan.

Blankets for Canada creates blankets for Canadians in need.

Mother Bear Project sends handknit or crocheted bears to children affected by HIV/AIDS.

I knit these Dashing Mitts to go along with the Woodman’s Cap I made for my cousin’s birthday. They are a perfect, quick knit, and take a little less than a skein of Malabrigo Worsted.  I love wearing them so much that I’ll just have to knit a pair for myself! The pattern was published in the Spring 2007 Knitty and was Cheryl Niameth’s “guy-friendly” answer to the immensely popular Fetching.

It’s getting to be the perfect weather for mitts like these. This is definitely my favourite time of year in Toronto. The days are bright and the air is cool. I walked across the valley to Cabbagetown today, an area that got its name from the cabbages growing in the front yards of the Irish immigrants that settled there in the 1840s.  The neighbourhood is particularly pretty in the autumn – the tradition of cabbages in front yards seems to have continued. Although now mostly in decorative planters on front porches.

Another pair of fingerless mitts knit from Lucy Findlay’s wonderfully bobbly pattern. This pair belongs to Jane. The dark grey with flecks of colour seemed perfect for her, and for the season ahead.

I used a felted alpaca tweed, Grignasco Tango, which I was sad to learn is no longer in production. I picked up this batch at River City Yarns while in Edmonton visiting my little sister. If you’re ever in the area, stop in. They have great staff and wonderful yarns.

[Photos courtesy of Chris]

[Ravelled]

I used one of my all-time favourite yarns for these mitts, DROPS Extra Fine Merino. It’s so squishy and soft. The pattern is a great one – I really like the use of bobbles as an accent. The pattern is available for free on Lucy Findlay’s blog, { a-black-pepper }.

They are wrapped and ready to go to their new home but given the summer heat these mitts will likely have to wait for autumn to be worn!

(Raveled)