After I made my Encompass scarf I thought the pattern would be perfect for mittens, since I’d just made a pair of women’s mittens that were 40 stitches around and thus exactly right for the Encompass patterning.

I did a 15-stitch thumb gusset in the basketweave-y stitch pattern, picking up a 16th stitch afterward to make the pattern work out right. Jenny asked for the right thumb tip to be left open so she could work her iPod while she’s jogging. I was glad she did, because it gave me some peace of mind as I was running out of yarn. (If necessary I was prepared to interpret “tip” as “the entire last joint.”) I finished these babies with about 5 feet of yarn to spare. Tip from me to you: if you decide to make an Encompass scarf and mittens of your own, you might want more than 250 yards of DK yarn.