Spindrift Fingerless Mitts

Spindrift Fingerless Mitts by Corrine Walcher

Project Overview

The Spindrift Fingerless Mitts are a pair of knitted hand coverings designed to provide warmth while keeping fingers free for dexterity and tactile work. Originally created for the November 2017 Yarn Crush club, these mitts feature a distinctive mirrored cable pattern combined with an extra-long cuff designed to provide additional wind protection during winter wear. The fingerless design makes them practical for activities requiring hand mobility while maintaining wrist and forearm warmth.

Finished Dimensions

The completed mitts measure 5 inches across the cuff and hand when unstretched, with the ability to stretch up to 8 inches for comfortable fit adjustment. The extra-long cuff provides extended coverage up the forearm for enhanced warmth and wind resistance.

Yarn and Materials

These mitts are knitted using Vocabulary Yarns Deliciate, a 100% Merino wool yarn with a yardage of 181 yards per 100 grams. The sample shown was knitted in the colorway Cara Cara. The yarn weight falls into the aran and worsted weight categories, making it suitable for creating fabric with good drape and warmth without excessive bulk.

Needles and Tools

Knitting is worked in the round using a set of 5 double-pointed needles in size 6 US (4.0 mm), or needles sized to obtain the specified gauge. Alternatively, knitters may use their preferred method for working in the round, such as circular needles or other techniques. A cable needle is required for executing the cable stitches that form the pattern.

Gauge

The pattern specifies a gauge of 19 stitches and 26 rows over 4 inches when worked in the round using blocked stockinette stitch. Achieving proper gauge is essential for obtaining the correct finished dimensions and ensuring the mitts fit as intended.

Knitting Techniques and Stitches

The Spindrift Fingerless Mitts employ intermediate-level knitting techniques suitable for knitters with foundational skills and experience with cable work. The pattern utilizes the following stitches and techniques:

• Stockinette Stitch: The primary fabric base, created by alternating knit and purl rows, producing a smooth, V-textured surface
• Cable Stitches: The defining feature of these mitts, the mirrored cable pattern is created using 2/2 left cable (2/2 LC) technique, which involves slipping 2 stitches to a cable needle and holding them in front while knitting the next 2 stitches, then knitting the held stitches
• Knit Two Together (K2tog): A right-leaning decrease used for shaping
• Slip Slip Knit (SSK): A left-leaning decrease created by slipping two stitches individually as if to knit, then knitting them together through the back loops
• Knit into Front and Back (KFB): An increase technique that creates an extra stitch by working into both the front and back of a single stitch
• Marker Placement and Slipping: Stitch markers are placed and slipped to track pattern repeats and construction sections

Difficulty Level

These mitts are rated as intermediate difficulty, making them appropriate for knitters who have mastered basic stitches and are comfortable working with cable patterns and shaping techniques. The in-the-round construction and cable work require attention to pattern detail and stitch management.

Craft Method

The Spindrift Fingerless Mitts are created entirely through the knitting craft, using needles and yarn to form interlocking loops that create the fabric structure. The in-the-round construction method produces seamless mitts with continuous fabric.