Akkol Mittens

Akkol Mittens by Terry Morris

What Is Being Made

The Akkol Mittens are a pair of warm, decorative mittens designed for women's and men's sizing. This knitting project features an overall two-color pattern that covers the entire mitten surface, offering knitters the flexibility to choose between bold, highly contrasting color combinations or more subtle, coordinating color schemes. The pattern is available in two sizes: Women's Medium and Women's Large/Men's Medium.

Techniques Used

These mittens are constructed using stranded colorwork, a traditional knitting technique where two colors are carried simultaneously across the work to create the decorative pattern. The pattern is worked in the round using the stockinette stitch as the base fabric, which provides a smooth, classic finish. The mittens are knit from the cuff upward, incorporating shaping techniques including a thumb gusset for proper fit and top decreases to shape the mitten crown. The design requires working with detailed charts that map out the entire mitten layout as well as individual sections for the thumb gusset, crown shaping, and the repeating 12-stitch by 10-row main pattern motif.

Stitches Used

• Stockinette stitch – the primary stitch structure worked in the round
• Stranded colorwork – two-color knitting technique for the decorative pattern
• Ribbing – typically used for the cuff edge (standard in mitten construction)
• Decreases – shaping techniques for the thumb gusset and crown decreases

Materials and Specifications

The Akkol Mittens require 250 yards for Women's Medium or 350 yards for Women's Large/Men's Medium of fingering or baby weight yarn in two colors. The recommended yarn is Baby Ull by Dalegarn, a 100% washable wool available in 50-gram skeins with 175 meters per skein. The photo sample uses one skein each of two colors: Main Color (MC) 5545 Blue and Contrasting Color (CC) 5135 Violet. Knitters will need US Size 1 (2.25mm) double point needles or the size required to achieve proper gauge, along with two stitch markers and smooth waste yarn for the thumb opening. The recommended gauge is 8 stitches by 11 rounds per 1 inch when working stranded colorwork in stockinette stitch.

Pattern Structure

The pattern includes comprehensive charts for the complete mitten construction, with separate detailed charts provided for individual sections including the thumb gusset shaping, the top crown decreases, and the repeating 12-stitch by 10-row main pattern motif. The design features 5 repeats of the main pattern for Women's Medium or 6 repeats for Women's Large/Men's Medium, allowing the colorwork pattern to be distributed evenly across the mitten surface.

Difficulty Level

Classified as advanced, the Akkol Mittens are best suited for experienced knitters who are comfortable with stranded colorwork techniques, reading detailed charts, working in the round with double point needles, and managing multiple colors simultaneously. The combination of colorwork, shaping, and the need for accurate gauge makes this an intermediate-to-advanced project.