Here’s what I am currently knitting. A couple of easy, free patterns, as well as a hat and sweater.
Because I live in a climate that is seldom considered to be “cool”, I knit with wool year round. I’m not sure what other knitters do, but this is the time of year when all the big yarn sellers come out with cotton, linen and silk yarns and showcase knitting projects for lightweight tops. I really don’t pay much attention to that because most “summer” projects are still too hot to wear here in central Florida.
Currently I am finishing up four knitting projects I have been working on regularly. I like to have a variety of knitting going at once.
The Hidden Gems Shawl
For a while now I have avoided knitting “shawls” because I never wear them. I would love to, but in this hot and humid climate the last thing I want is something around my neck. But, when I saw “Hidden Gems” knit up in hands-spun yarn, I thought it was a beauty and it might be nice to have one.
Hand-spun shawl / scarf
The shawl is more of a scarf in the shape of an elongated set of triangles – larger in the middle coming to points on each end. It is a free pattern, and could be knit using any type of yarn. This pattern would be great for a beginner knitter. It is mostly garter stitch with a few other stitches that would be good practice. You should know how to knit front and back, slip, slip knit, and knit 2 together.
The Orange Slouchy Hat
I have knit this slouchy hat in light blue already. It is a tedious knit that seems to take forever and that makes it great as a take-along project AND becomes a very lovely everyday hat. I have mostly been knitting on this hat while traveling. I no longer have a car of my own, so I ride as a passenger everywhere. It is perfect for knitting this simple 1×1 ribbing.
The Honey Cowl
The Honey Cowl is another simple (and FREE) pattern that is perfect for take-along car rides, or TV knitting. This is my third Honey Cowl and it is another good pattern for a beginner knitter to try. Because stitches are slipped, this is a faster knit.
The Lopi Sweater
This sweater started as a vest. The vest directions were hard to understand, mainly because I have never knit a vest. After I knit the body part of the “vest” I had to switch to making it a sweater. The whole thing was pretty much made up as I went along.
As I write this the pullover is nearly finished. I mainly have weaving in of ends, washing and blocking left. There is no pattern for this, but I followed stitch counts (mostly) from Farfuglar.
Yoke patterning of the Lopi Sweater
The sweater is nearly finished, and once that is done with I will look for another sweater to knit. I already have yarn set aside for two patterns, so I will probably begin one of those. The simplicity of the hat, cowl and shawl patterns make them perfect for occasional knitting and there is no hurry in completing any of them.
Like most knitters, I always have more than one project going at a time. For me, the more challenging projects, which take concentration, must be worked early in the day. By evening, the light is not great, and I am tired, but I still need something to keep my hands busy while watching television.
My daughter has mentioned that she likes those simple slouchy hats. For the most part, they are pretty boring to knit, and I guess that is why I have not made one for her. Knit one, purl one, endlessly round and round… snore. But that is the type of knitting I do at night anyway, so why not make something special while I’m at it?
I chose the pattern by Churchmouse, which I had knit once before only in a heavier yarn with different needles. This time I wanted to follow the pattern exactly.
Knit in Camp Colors yarn which is Superwash. Wool and Company had closeout pricing, so I bought a 6 skeins in three colors. This is really nice yarn which is very soft. The hat did not stretch out like superwash tends to do. I would use it again, and plan to! I think I will pick a new slouchy hat pattern for my next hat.
Knitting is done on the WSRight side when doneweaving end at brimLeftover yarn from skein 2
For the blue watchcap – or slouchy hat as I call it – I used the needles suggested, with cast-on number and length as pattern called for. I did not do the pattern’s cast-on, but used the Old Norwegian cast-on.
Knitting a 1×1 ribbed hat is easy, BUT… any little mistake shows. Also, the top of this hat has some unqiue decreasing, and those decreases are knit on the wrong side. Actually, what you are doing is knitting the entire hat inside-out. Once complete, turn it to see the right side.
I used nearly all of two skeins of yarn for this hat. It is knit in a size 1US needle and that is a lot of stitches, let me tell you!
Because this hat is so long, it can be worn with a folded brim as well. Knit it shorter and make the beanie.
Free Slouchy Hat Patterns at Purl Soho
Who doesn’t love free things? Purl Soho is an excellent place to find free patterns, and very pretty yarn. They offer a few hat patterns – for free – that fit the slouchy category.
Often I will see a pattern knit up in a really awful choice of yarn. I’ve been guilty of that myself. It’s always worth knitting with the appropriate type of yarn to match the project.
In my opinion, a slouchy hat looks best when knit in a fingering or DK yarn. The smaller stitches will help make the hat fall nicely at the back without being bulky.
But nothing can help a hat look better when it has been knit in a cheap, ugly yarn! It’s a hat, so why not choose yarn that will be soft and warm and look nice – it will be front and center on your head after all! Sock yarn, which is superwash, works well for projects like this and especially if the hat is a gift to someone who will not hand wash. For extra warmth, a nice wool such as Jamieson & Smith or Rauma would work nicely (must hand wash wool). Cotton is not a good choice as it is not stretchy and tends to be stiff. Also it usually shrinks and looks worse after washing.
Hats I Have Knit
I love knitting hats. They can be simple and quick to finish or involved and challenging. The Winter Solstice aka “chicken hat” qualifies as slouchy as does the Skiff. Some of the photos below have a link (the text) to my post page where you will find a link to the pattern.
It is not a misprint – all mittens have thumbs, but not all mittens have thrums!
What is a Thrum?
Before fiber becomes yarn as we know it, it needs to be spun. The puffy fiber which is used to spin the yarn is called roving, or a carded top. (To get the roving to that point requires other processes as well.) To make thrums, that fluffy roving is knit, piece by piece, into a mitten. Knit a simple pattern, and add the roving – here and there – to create fluff inside the mitten. Each bit of fluff is called a thrum. Hence, when you do this you have thrummed mittens.
My rovingInside the mittenThis is 4 oz. of roving! It’s a lot.
Yarn spinners buy roving to spin (and sometimes dye, if it’s natural) to create their own unique hand-spun yarn. What I call roving, is also sometimes called a top. I’m unfamiliar with it really, but just wanted some fluffy stuff to add to my mittens!
Thrummed mittens are perfect for those who live in cold weather climates. The Well Sweep Sheep shop at Etsy has handmade thrummed mittens for sale. Take a look at the photos if you are not familiar with the look of thrummed mittens.
For a good result, most knitting projects take some planning. When I first saw mittens knit with thrums, I wanted to know more. I can’t believe I have never heard of this until recently. Now, I will plan and knit mittens with thrums – for the first time.
A Little About Mitten Thumbs – Two Ways to Knit
Be aware that mittens can have either “side gore” or “peasant / afterthought” thumbs. I’ve only knit mittens with the side gore directions, which makes them interchangeable – no right and left. The thumb area begins to expand shortly after the cuff is knit by making increases. Once part of the thumb is knit, those stitches are put on hold to finish after the hand.
All mitts and mittens I have knit have a side gore thumb. These are not Thrummed.
An afterthought thumb is added by leaving an opening in the hand where the thumb will be added later. The thumb is placed more toward the palm, which means each mitten knit will be for either the right or left hand and are NOT interchangeable. Read this article at Just Crafty Enough to see the difference.
Free Patterns for Mittens With Thrums
When searching for mitten patterns with thrums, free patterns and patterns to purchase are available. While most people love free things, we must take into consideration how well a free pattern works. Some free patterns are great, but others don’t work out.
Since I have knit quite a few mittens, I’m really only looking for cast on number, and thrumming information. I can’t see paying for that. YouTube and knitting websites all have information about how to thrum. Basically, I need a knitting pattern in worsted or chunky / bulky yarn where I can add thrums.
Here is a list of free patterns I would like to suggest. I have not knit any of these myself. The patterns are listed at Ravelry and get good reviews and ratings.
Chroma Thrummed Mitts – (Bulky) I printed this free pattern out and it has an “afterthought” or “peasant” thumb. This is something I am not thrilled about as I’ve never knit that type of thumb. But, the pattern has nice directions and advice on thrumming.
Worlds Simplest Mittens – not a thrumming pattern, but Tin Can Knits has offered this free pattern to knit mittens in 4 different weights of yarn, including worsted and chunky. Also a toddler size is included. I’m thinking I’ll watch a thrumming video, and add thrums to any of these mittens. Should work, right? Thumb type is side gore style.
Pay For Thrummed Mittens Patterns
Although free thrummed mitten patterns may be fine for anyone who can basically knit a mitten, some people will want more help. There is nothing wrong with supporting designers by buying their patterns.
Thrummed Mittens – by Staci Perry, from Very Pink Knits. When you buy this pattern you will have links to her videos to help with placing the thrums, or just watch her video here.
It’s a Snow Day! Mittens – (Fingering) by Bunnymuff – this pattern includes stranded colorwork with thrums. I’d love to knit these once I get the thrumming bit down on a simple pair.
One question I had was about the roving. I know nothing about it really, but I assume a nice wool of some sort would make those thrums nice.
I couldn’t find much info about this. At Three Waters Farm on Etsy, I see nice roving made from all sorts of fleece, including BFL, Merino, Merino and silk, Falkland wool, Romney, Corriedale, Targhee, Polwarth, and … yikes! Now I am more confused. I do know that you want wool, which will felt after washing. So do not use Superwash! This way the thrums will mesh together to create a nice soft layer inside the mittens…. right?
I am making mittens that I want to be very warm. Wool is my first choice so I don’t think I could go wrong with any of the wools listed, as long as they are not superwash. Bits of the roving will be pulled from the braid to match up with the yarn I use.
I ended up buying my roving from Paradise Fibers. I bought a merino and silk blend mainly for the color – I love the swirls of gold and pale green. Etsy shops also sell roving, and so do many yarn shops.
The roving I bought
Bulky Yarn Ideas for Quick Mitten Knitting
Roving is puffy, so a worsted, chunky or bulky weight yarn would be nice for a first thrummed mitten project. Apparently you simply make smaller thrums if the yarn is lighter weight.
Here are some bulky yarn suggestions for knitting thrummed mittens.
Prices listed here are current to the writing of this post (Jan. 2022) and obviously may change.
The Petite Wool, Bulky- We Are Knitters, $14.90 – $19.90 for 142 yds. (+/-) per skein
Alafosslopi – Bulky – Istex Icelandic wool – buy direct from Iceland for about $6.29 per skein, or find it available in many US locations, usually for $10 each skein (109 yds). (I’m using this type of yarn for my thrummed mittens.)
Read about knitting my first pair of thrummed mittens on a post soon to come.
January first means getting organized for the new year, and planning for new knitting projects.
Happy new year! It’s January first, 2022 and first thing this morning – before the sun was up – I had old and new knitting patterns scattered all over my bed.
Yesterday, I finally got the Carbeth Cardigan off the needles – just in time for the new year!
I was looking for information about my Lopi wool order, to see how much yarn I used, and ended up with this mess! So I went with it, and continued to organize my printed knitting patterns.
Getting organized!
Although all patterns are kept on file on Ravelry, I like to print them out. If the power goes out, or the internet is down, I won’t have access. I also like to make notes on my printed patterns, like the date I began and ended the project. Also, what I changed, liked or disliked about the pattern itself. Sometimes I make a note of which yarn I’m planning to use on patterns not knit yet.
Today, I left old patterns in my big sheep binder and put newer patterns in a green file folder. They are organized by project, such as “hats”, “cowls”, “sweaters”, etc. I threw some old patterns away because I decided I would never knit them.
My sheep binder (Zazzle affiliate link) is something I created and put up for sale in my Zazzle shop. The wording on the front is customizable. Then I bought plastic expandable folders (this is an Amazon affiliate link) to fit inside where I slid my printed patterns. They were filling up and expanding to the point of overflowing.
A few weeks ago we took boxes of things to Goodwill. My bookshelf is now more sparse and I can more readily find my knitting books. With my patterns sorted out, I am ready to knit new things!
Knitting Project Plans for 2022
I also had the chance to group my most recent pattern printouts into a folder “to be knit”. Sometimes I will buy and print a pattern and it gets lost in the shuffle. As I sifted through my patterns I came across some Brooklyn Tweed hats which had been filed and forgotten.
The Tillage cabled beanie, by Jared Flood, would be perfect for my daughter. Also Solstice Glow hat, a chicken beanie by Bunnymuff (Mona Zillah) is a must because my daughter plans to raise chickens this year…!
For the boys (maybe for next Christmas) Hirombe and Treefolds, also by Jared Flood. Both are solid color hats with interesting designs. I’ve missed knitting hats.
Last year I knit 4 sweaters, 5 hats, 2 pair mittens, 2 pair fingerless mitts, 4 socks, 2 boot cuffs and 1 cowl. How do I know all this? If you have a Ravelry account, go to your account projects page and click on “challenge” in the top bar. It’s where you choose to challenge yourself with an amount of projects to complete, but then it lists all the crafts that were completed in each year.
Decided: My January 1 cast-on was for the Solstice Glow Chickens Hat.
New England's Narrow Road 