Knit Fingerless Gloves

I know I have been neglecting to post updates here for several months, but that doesn't mean I haven't been busy! I have been spending time finishing old projects and making new cards and books for craft shows and exhibitions.

The finished gloves!

These fingerless gloves are a Christmas present I made for my sister in law. I made them using the Lusekoftesque pattern on Ravelry. The yarn is called Road To China Light and is a wonderful blend of cashmere, silk, baby alpaca, and camel. Seriously, this yarn is ridiculously soft.

What the inside looks like.

This was my first colorwork project, and I am very happy with how it turned out. Honestly it was a lot easier than I was expecting, it is just a matter of paying attention to your chart and watching the tension on the yarn as you carry it over behind your work.

Detail of the colorwork.

The only problem I had was with the size. I followed the gauge but it ended up being too small for my sister in law's hands. Luckily it is going to be the perfect size for me! So now that Christmas is done I can finish the second glove for myself.

Look, they fit!  Hooray!

Knit Mittens

I knit these mittens as a birthday present for a good friend.  By the time I finished them, they were a belated birthday present, and it was not cold enough to wear mittens anymore... But it is the thought that counts, right?

I used a free pattern from Ravelry.com that redirected me to the Balkan Style blog.  This style is called Newfoundland Mittens because it is the traditional mitten worn in Newfoundland.  The pattern uses rows of contrasting colors along with slipped stitches to create a textural honeycomb pattern.  Traditionally these mittens are worked with contrasting, but subdued colors.  I decided to go with bright purple and magenta for a more modern look.  I used Debbie Stoller's Full O' Sheep Yarn for this project, the same yarn I used for my Owl Hat a few months ago.