Grove Mittens

Name: Grove Mittens

Pattern: Grove Mittens by Jared Flood
Made for me :)
Size: One size
Start date: August 19, 2009
Completed date: August 25, 2009
Needle size: US 6 / 4.0 mm
Yarn: Cascade Yarns 220 Wool
How much? 1 skein = 220.0 yards (201.2m)
Colour: 9484 Stratosphere
See it on Ravelry!

Made this to go with my Laurel hat! It was an uphill battle, but I think I won in the end! I didn't check the gauge (which is a bad habit, but I never do) and the mittens were extremely tight when they were on the needle. They were also poorly shaped and weirdly long (they reminded me of hot dog buns for some reason). I wasn't very happy with them and kept thinking about how I could turn my frown upside down with these mittens. I even tried lining the mittens, but that didn't work out so well either. Thankfully blocking did miracles to these gloves, and now I actually like them!

Tip: The chart in the pattern is very tiny, so what I did was scanned the chart (you can also take a picture of it) and cropped it so it was just the left mitten or the right mitten chart by itself. I then printed each chart so that it was as large as a 8.5 by 11 page. It was so much easier to see and I just highlighted each row as I was done knitting it.

Modifications: Made the cuff a bit bigger than instructed in the pattern. I did k2tog instead of k2tog through the back loops. When I did them through the back loop the stitches were going in the opposite direction of where they needed to go. Used kitchener stitch to bind off instead of using the three needle method.

Errata: I think there should be a change in marker placement. Work to the end of row 49. Remove marker, slip one stitch to right needle with yarn in the back, and then put the marker back on the needle.

Blocking:The mittens turned out a bit small (and I have really small hands!). Oh well, nothing blocking and stretching can’t fix. We’ll see how blocking does. I might try knitting with 4.5mm needle next time (serves me right for not checking the gauge and relying on blocking to fix any problems). What I did was cut out one side of the mitten chart when I was done and traced it on a piece of cardboard (this piece was a bit bigger than my hands and definitely alot bigger than the finished knitting piece). Soaked the mitten, and then used a towel to get rid of excess water. Blocked it over the piece of cardboard, and the result is perfect pair of mittens! I should of used a piece of plastic to block the mittens instead of cardboard. I didnt have any plastic, so the cardboard was just fine! I would have thrown these mittens in the garbage can if it weren't for blocking. Blocking saved the day :)