Christmas Mittens

I made a few pairs of fingerless gloves for Christmas this year using different patterns. I tried to think about how the recipient might use them and find a pattern that suited that use. For example, I made a pair for my brother-in-law with his outdoorsy businesses in mind that were nice and sturdy. I also wanted to make some that were soft and cozy, so I turned to a different pattern.

For these, I used the same pattern I used to last year to make a pair for my yarn mentor. This pair was for a woman with smaller hands who likes to work outside. So, I made them slimmer and in a dark color that wouldn't show much dirt. As it turns out, she told me she's worn them inside to read and type when it's particularly cold. The yarn I used for this pair was Caron's Simply Soft in Dark Sage.

This pair was for my brother, who has very large hands and drives a lot. I find that fingerless gloves are perfect for driving. I knew he'd prefer something basic for the color, and it doesn't get much more basic than a nice, neutral black. In this case, I went with Caron's Simply Soft in Black.

One of the great things about this pattern is that it's easy to size. To make them longer and wider for bigger hands, you just begin with a longer starting chain and work more rows. For a smaller hand, reduce the starting chain and work fewer rows.

If you're interested in more detail on my crochet projects you can find all that over on Ravelry.

Sturdy Fingerless Gloves

Let's get started on all the handmade Christmas gifts! I made these gloves for one of my two favorite brothers-in-law, who both DJ's and does grading and tree removal throughout the year. Since he works outside using his hands, I thought he could use a pair of sturdy gloves that would still leave his fingers free to get things done.

The pattern for these is from the blog My Recycled Bags, which as the name suggests, has a number of great free crochet patterns using reclaimed plastics and other materials. The Men's Crocheted Fingerless Gloves pattern uses standard yarn, and I made these using Caron's Simply Soft Solids in Black.

One of the best things about this pattern is that it explains a simple technique to end continuous crochet in the round with a smooth edge. This is something I've struggled with because I greatly prefer this method to ending each round with a slip stitch to join and a chain to start the next round. However, I've ended up with a bump at the end of the final round because of how it steps up over the last few stitches. The technique described in this pattern, which uses slip stitches to replace the last few stitches in the final round, completely fixes that!

The pattern suggests crocheting tightly or doing a decrease in the last couple of rounds to make sure the hand opening is snug. I decided to do a decrease on row 32 (second to last row), then just crochet tightly for the final row:

Row 32 - [Sc in next seven sc, sc2tog] four times, sc in next three sc (34 stitches)
Row 33 - Sc around using instructions to end with a smooth edge.

The thumbs on my gloves lay at an odd angle when they're not worn, but fit and looked normal on. I assume this is related to something about how I worked the first row of stitches to add the thumb, so any tips on how to fix that would be welcome.

Mentor Mittens

I made these fingerless gloves as a thank you for a friend who's been teaching me the ropes, or the yarns at least, since I started crocheting. He took me to the local yarn store and gave me a little walking tour introduction to different fibers and weights and has been extremely encouraging about my new craft.

I wanted to make something with some texture to add visual interest, while still looking masculine, so I used this extremely easy ribbed pattern from Suzies Stuff. The yarns Caron Simply Soft solids in Chocolate. I was a little intimidated by adding the thumb, but it turned out not to be that hard. I plan on experimenting with this and a few other fingerless glove patterns for Christmas gifts next year.