Bird in Hand Mittens

Thanks so much for all your nice comments on my recent knitted stuff. I’m glad you all enjoyed seeing my family modeling stuff but there have been repercussions. You see, Dale’s head has swelled beyond belief after reading all your comments, Hannah is still annoyed that I posted ugly (i.e. cold) photos of her last week, and I’m wishing I had invited photographer extraordinaire Cheryl down to take those photos of me. Ahem. It does feel good to finally be caught up on posting all my recently finished knitted things, though. And that means now I can go on to show you the stuff that’s currently coming off the needles.

January is officially Knit More Mittens month for me. I joined NaKniMitMo and it has really given me the incentive to get cracking on the various mittens I’ve been wanting to knit. First up are these Bird in Hand Mittens. I’ve had these in my queue since Kate released the pattern. I’ve seen my friends knit these and loved them and I’m so glad I finally knit a pair of my own.

The yarn is Botanical Shades 2 Ply Sportweight in the shades of spruce and khaki. I bought it at Rhinebeck last October and got the stamp of approval from Margene and Marcy so you know it’s got to be good. Despite what I said last week about mohair, I don’t mind mohair blends, and this yarn is a nice blend of wool and mohair. It’s got a bit of a fuzz but I actually think some fuzz is a good thing in a mitten.

I love the braided cuff although it did confuse me at first. It’s really not difficult but, like any new technique, I had to slow down and read the directions carefully. Once I’d done it correctly it was easy to repeat and I think it makes for some really special detailing.

Speaking of detailing, I decided to make my mittens truly unique – I knit the bird in red. I was hoping it would look like a cardinal but it looks more like a red chicken to me. Oh well. I guess when I want to see a cardinal I’ll just look at this photo I took the other day for my Project 365 set on Flickr.

Now that’s a cardinal.

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This Post Has 57 Comments

  3. Your mittens are absolutely gorgeous! Have you sent Kate a picture? Your comment about the red chicken made me laugh, too!

  5. The cardinal picture is amazing.

    I love the red bird on your mittens. Funny, I was thinking of making a blue bird on my next pair (because there will be a “next pair”).

  7. I am always amazed by other people’s ability to do colorwork in mittens. Some day I really will have to give intarsia/fair isle another go.

  9. Pretty mittens. I thought ‘cardinal’ when I saw the thumb. It’s a winter bird so it’s a good choice.

  11. I really like the bird knit in red! It looks like a cardinal to me. Those mittens have been in my queue for a really long time too. Enjoy yours!

  12. I love cardinals against the snow – that photo is gorgeous!

    And the mittens are good…okay you think he looks like a chicken, but I disagree. He looks like a songbird!
    (((Hugs)))

  16. When I grow up and get good at this knitting thing, I want to make those mittens! Beautiful job….and if you squint, the bird does look like a cardinal. The cardinal photo is spectacular…..you should make notecards out of that one.

  17. Your mittens are so beautiful that I’d be afraid to wear them. They’re more of a work of art! I do like that braided cuff.

  22. Your red bird reminds me of the special bluebird my mother embroidered in a cross stitch sampler at my request which she made when I was little. Kudos!

  23. Well, when I saw the first picture, I thought – Oh cool, she put a cardinal on the thumb!

    Cardinal or chicken, nice job on the mittens.

  24. Beautiful mittens!! I love the colors you chose…and the cardinal on the thumb looks perfect! What a great idea, doing the bird in a different color to make it pop. 😀

  25. THAT is a beautiful photograph! I love how a few branches look green, and of course, how bright the cardinal is. I definitely see the cardinal on your mittens – great work (as always)!

  29. You make such nice knitted things! I love the mittens (and all the beautiful things you showed yesterday).

  31. Oh My!! That Cardinal Photo is beautiful! What a focal point in the snow! I will go back and look again as it has captivated me!

    And yes the mittens are very nice as well.

  35. When I first saw the ‘red’ bird my first impression was a Cardinal – – – not a chicken. I have a Cardinal family living in my small back yard year round. I wondered if they posed for you. Did your model fly in from Houston for the photo shoot ?

  36. Your work is always so inspirational!!! I’ve also had the bird in hand pattern in my line up of things to do (only, it takes me forrrrever to get things done!!!). Good job on the mittens!!!

  37. Great job with your BIH! I think having a little fuzz is really nice in color work – something extra for that stranded yarn to grab onto! Changing the bird to a differnt color is a great idea. If I do them again, I’ll remember that!

  38. oh – I love them! And I hope that my fair isle knitting comes out as great as yours.
    I would have known that was a cardinal (grins)!

  41. The cardinal is beautiful…and the mittens are beautiful! One day I plan to try something like that…expand my horizons a bit.

  43. Hurrah! You finished! They are beautiful and the red bird is something I may have to steal for mine. Just thumbs to do tonight! So which mittens are next for you??

  46. The cardinal picture is gorgeous. I can never find my camera quick enough to snap one.

    Love the mittens, I have to get the pattern and make a pair sometime soon.

  50. Really nice mittens, the red bird did give me a giggle – (when you brought up that it looked like a chicken). The vivid red of the cardinal against the snow is visually stunning.

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