Mitten Garland Advent Calendar – Week 24

Happy Monday! I can’t believe this is it, the last week of our Mitten Garland Advent Calendar. For this final mitten I had to do a tomte. Here is yourAdvent Calendar Mitten 24 Chart.

For those of you not familiar with Scandinavian folklore, the tomte (or nisse in Norway and Denmark and tonttu in Finland) is a a mythological creature typically associated with the winter solstice and the Christmas season. According to tradition, the tomte lives in the houses and barns of the farmstead, and secretly act as their guardian. If treated well, they protect the family and animals from evil and misfortune, and may also aid the chores and farm work. However, they are known to be short tempered, especially when offended. Once insulted, they will usually play tricks, steal items and even maim or kill livestock. At Christmas, the tomte will deliver gifts at the door. It is customary to leave a behind a bowl of porridge with butter for the tomte, in gratitude for the services rendered.

I used duplicate stitch in a few areas of this mitten to prevent having to carry a third color long distances for just a few stitches. I duplicate stitched, the white at the tip of the hat, the eyes and the hands. Other than that it is pretty straightforward and I kept the colors to two a row.

And there is my whole set. This was something I started on a whim and I’m really charmed at how it came out. Thanks so much to everyone who knit along. The group on Ravelry really kept me going.

I hope you’ll all join us in January for a mitten knit along to celebrate National Knit Mitten Month.