Despite the warming trend, it's not exactly tropical out there. There's nothing worse than chilly hands when you are trying to enjoy the great outdoors for the first time in months. Then again - sweaty hands tucked inside wooly mittens aren't much better (yuck!). Fliptop mittens are the perfect solution to this metacarpal conundrum; everyone should have a pair.
I bought my first pair of fliptop mittens while traveling in Estonia as a college kid. I still cherish the grey wool fliptops that I bought there at a local market for something like the equivalent of $3 - they're practical and stylish, but also a reminder of a simpler time in my life when I thought nothing of doing fun and adventurous things like, well, traveling to Estonia! Over the years, my Estonian mitts have worn thin at the thumbs and palms and slowly but surely are facing retirement.
This season I went a little nuts with the fliptop mits - they made great holiday gifts, and were a fun way to learn some new knitting techniques. Some people have the patience to knit fingerless gloves under the fliptop - not me. I stuck with patterns that had a cuff opening for all 4 fingers, and then a full thumb. These knit up faster, and I haven't had any complaints (:
My first attempt was with Ysolda Teague's pattern called Snapdragon fliptops - I really enjoy Ysolda's patterns and was enticed by the funky cable pattern on the wrist of this one. I used Spud and Chole Sweater, in "turtle" - it was a good choice. I think they came out just great.
They're a smidge too big - a common phenomenon for me (despite checking my gauge and going down a needle size on most projects...) so I'm holding on to them and waiting for the perfect gift-giving opportunity to come along.
I thought these would make perfect gifts for some special gals in my life, but wanted to eliminate the cabling - both to make the construction a bit quicker, and to show off the variegated yarn that I chose (Farmhouse Yarn's Andy Merino), so I tweaked the pattern just a bit and came out with these:
I wanted to try another version of a fliptop mit and stumbled upon a pattern called Frances, by Jane Richmond, another awesome knitwear designer. This pattern has a larger gauge (i.e. fewer stitches per inch) and worked out beautifully in Lion Brand Nature's Choice Organic Cotton. They looked like they needed a little embellishment, so I made duplicate stitch snowflakes on the fliptop of each. A tiny snap is sewn in to keep the tops fastened away when fingers are needed
Bottom line: Fliptops are fun and functional - try 'em!
