As some of you might know, I’ve been designing and knitting a pair of mittens each month this year. To date, they have all been mittens stranded or intarsia colorwork. This month I decided to give myself a break and do something a little easier, stripes.

I wanted to use the colors that reminded me of a sunset, yellows, oranges, pink and purples and I wanted them to blend together somehow. What I came up with was to use two strands of yarn at a time, sometimes of the same color and sometimes of two colors. This made for a nice quick knit, because the gauge was bigger, and gave an interesting effect.

This looks best when the colors you choose are close together in tone. I’m really happy with my choices of oranges and pink, but wish I have found a pinkier purple.

Sunset Stripes Mittens

Download a pdf of the Sunset Stripes Mittens Pattern

Size: Woman’s Medium 7.5 inches

Supplies:

• Fingering weight yarn in yellow, light orange, orange, pink, and light pinkish-purple (I used about 50 yards each of Knit Picks Palette in Kumquat Heather, Orange, Fuchsia and Huckleberry Heather and a scrap amount of Canary)
• Four size 3 double pointed needles or size needed to get gauge
• Stitch markers
• Scrap yarn
• Tapestry needle
• Scissors

Gauge: 6 stitches and 9 rows per inch (you are knitting with two strands of yarn at a time)

Abbreviations:

• K – knit
• P – purl
• Kfb – knit front and back into the same stitch
• M1l – make one stitch left
• M1r – make one stitch right
• K2tog – knit two stitches together

Note: Throughout this project you will be knitting with two strands of yarn, sometimes two of the same color and sometimes one each of two different colors. When knitting with the same color, I knit from both the outside and inside of the ball. Other than the initial row of yellow and final stripe of purple, each color stripe is 12 rows long.

Cast on 46 stitches with two strands of yellow. Divide between three needles. Join together to knit in the round. Place a stitch marker between the first and last stitch to mark rows.

Row 1: k1, p1 until end of row
Row 2: Switch to two strands of light orange. K until end of row.
Row 3 – 13: k1, p2 until end of row
Row 14: Switch to one strand of light orange and one strand of orange. K1, p1 until end of row.
Rows 15 – 19: k1, p1 until end of row.
Row 20: k45, kfb (47 stitches)
Row 21: k23, m1l, k1, m1r, k23 (49 stitches)
Rows 22 – 23: k
Row 24: k23, m1l, k3, m1r, k23 (51 stitches)
Rows 25: k
Row 26: Switch to two strands of orange. K
Row 27: k23, m1l, k5, m1r, k23 (53 stitches)
Rows 28 – 29: k
Row 30: k23, m1l, k7, m1r, k23 (55 stitches)
Rows 31 – 32: k
Row 33: k23, m1l, k9, m1r, k23 (57 stitches)
Rows 34 – 35: k
Row 36: k23, m1l, k11, m1r, k23 (59 stitches)
Row 37: k
Row 38: Switch to one strand of orange and one strand of pink. K
Row 39: k23, m1l, k13, m1r, k23 (61 stitches)
Rows 40 – 42: k
Row 43: k23, m1l, k15, m1r, k23 (63 stitches)
Row 44: k
Row 45: k23, put the next 17 stitches on a piece of scrap yarn, cast on 1 stitch, k23 (47 stitches on the needles, 17 set aside)
Rows: 46 – 49: k
Row 50: Switch to two strands of pink. K
Rows 51 – 61: k
Row 62: Switch to one strand of pink and one strand of purple. K
Rows 63 – 71: k
Row 72 (or when the hand of the mitten reaches the top of the little finger): k14, k2tog, k13, k2tog, k14, k2tog (44 stitches)
Row 73: k9, k2tog, k9, k2tog, k9, k2tog, k9, k2tog (40 stitches)
Row 74: Switch to two strands of purple. K
Row 75: k8, k2tog, k8, k2tog, k8, k2tog, k8, k2tog (36 stitches)
Row 76: k
Row 77: k7, k2tog, k7, k2tog, k7, k2tog, k7, k2tog (32 stitches)
Row 78: k
Row 79: k6, k2tog, k6, k2tog, k6, k2tog, k6, k2tog (28 stitches)
Row 80: k
Row 81: k5, k2tog, k5, k2tog, k5, k2tog, k5, k2tog (24 stitches)
Row 82: k
Row 83: k4, k2tog, k4, k2tog, k4, k2tog, k4, k2tog (20 stitches)
Row 84: k
Row 85: k3, k2tog k3, k2tog, k3, k2tog, k3, k2tog (16 stitches)
Row 86: k2, k2tog, k2, k2tog, k2, k2tog, k2, k2tog (12 stitches)
Row 87: k1, k2tog, k1, k2tog, k1, k2tog, k1, k2tog (8 stitches)
Row 88: k2tog, k2tog, k2tog, k2tog (4 stitches)

Cut the yarn leaving about a 6-inch tail. Put the tail onto a tapestry needle and eave into stitches remaining on the needles. Pull through to the inside and tighten. Weave in ends.

Thumb:

Put the 17 stitches on the scrap yarn on three needles. Pick up and knit 1 stitch from the hand of the mitten using one strand of pink and one of orange. Place a stitch marker after this stitch to mark rows.

Row 1 – 5: k
Row 6: Switch to two strand of pink. K
Rows 7 – 15: k
Row 16 (or when thumb hits middle of thumbnail): k4, k2tog, k4, k2tog, k4, k2tog (15 stitches)
Row 17: k
Row 18: Switch to one strand of pink and one strand of purple. K3, k2tog, k3, k2tog, k3, k2tog (12 stitches)
Row 19: k
Row 20: k2, k2tog, k2, k2tog, k2, k2tog (9 stitches)
Row 21: k1, k2tog, k1, k2tog, k1, k2tog (6 stitches)
Row 22: k2tog, k2tog, k2tog (3 stitches)

Cut the yarn leaving about a 6-inch tail. Put the tail onto a tapestry needle and eave into stitches remaining on the needles. Pull through to the inside and tighten. Weave in ends.

Copyright 2014 Kathy Lewinski JustCraftyEnough.com
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