I originally posted these several years ago, but it suddenly occurred to me that I had better get moving if I wanted to get some holiday crafting finished and that all of you might be in the same boat. These are a really fun way to use up scrap yarn and they go fast. In fact if you have taken one of my Handpainted Skeins or Intro to Dyes classes, these are perfect for the mini skeins you dyed. They are also super cute knit as pairs of mittens and attached together with a string. So if you need a little gift for someone or a little holiday decor of your own, here you go. And happy knitting!
I wanted to knit some tiny mitten ornaments and although I found all kinds of cute patterns using sock weight and other tiny yarn, I didn’t come up with anything for worsted weight, which I have oodles of scraps of. These mittens knit up in about 15 minutes and are simple enough that you can add stripes and some simple patterns if you are so inclined. The finished mitten is about 3 inches long.
Materials: Worsted weight yarn scraps, four size 3 DPN, yarn darning needle
CO 12 stitches. (I like them divided evenly on 3 needles.)
K1 P1 ribbing for 6 rows.
K1 P1 KFB P. Repeat 2 more times. You now have 15 stitches.
Knit 8 rows.
K2tog, K 3. Repeat 2 more times. (12 stitches)
Knit 1 round.
K2tog, K2. Repeat 2 more times. (9 stitches)
Knit 1 round.
K2tog, K1. Repeat 2 more times. (6 stitches)
Cut your yarn. Thread the end through a yarn needle. Pass the yarn end through the last 6 stitches. Pull tight and then pull the end to the inside of the mitten. (I don’t weave in ends on this, I just stuff the yarn tails to the inside of the mitten.)
To make the thumb, you will do a short section of i-cord.
CO 3 stitches. Knit 4 rows of i-cord.
K2tog, Knit 1. Cast off, leaving about a 6 inch tail.
Thread the end of the yarn through your needle. Slip the yarn end down through the center of the i cord and use the end to stitch the thumb in to place. A couple of stitches will do it. I put the bottom (cast on) edge of the i-cord even with the top of the ribbing.
Bury all the ends of yarn inside the mitten.
These little mittens are so cute. I have made one so far and I just love it. Considering another one or maybe 10. hehe
It took me much longer to make just because I am a beginner with double point needles but still love them!
So glad you love them! Don’t worry about it taking you a little longer. I have been knitting since I was about 12 so I have a little bit of practice. They are addictive though, aren’t they?