I love trees, and that devotion trickles down to each tiny appendage, leaf and twig. Leaf of Change Mittens are inspired by my delight in the annual arrival and departure of deciduous leaves.

The mittens feature a generous cuff with a rolled edge, a forethought thumb and a wedge top. The stranded design pairs an organic leaf pattern on the back of hand and a simple geometric motif on the palm. Because I like my knitting to be simple whenever possible, I’ve included a decorative side motif that makes it very easy to catch floats between needles when using the magic loop method.

If you adore leaves as much as me, I encourage you to make 2 pairs of mittens, one in springtime colors and another in an autumn palette. I could not choose, so I selected a spring green and an autumn brown and made one “leafing out” and one “falling leaves” mitten. Maybe you’ll do the same?

Please be aware that this mitten pattern is written in the Scandinavian style. It is almost entirely charted, with few written instructions. K2tog and K2togtbl decreases are worked in conjunction with the colorwork chart. If you are unfamiliar with the “no stitch” chart symbol, please see this blog post for more information.

A note about color: The sample mittens use opposite colors (switching MC and CC yarns for the second one). Yarn amounts stated in the pattern reflect this choice. If you would prefer your mittens to match, please ensure that you have about 50% more of the main color so you won’t be in danger of running out!

Techniques Used:
German twisted cast on
Small diameter knitting in the round
Knit decreases
Stranded knitting
Forethought thumb
Knitting from charts
Grafting with Kitchener stitch

Materials Needed:
Yarn:
123 yards each of DK weight yarn in two contrasting colors
Sample knit using Wollmeise Merino DK and Jilly and Kiddles Ideal DK
Needles:
US 7 / 4.5 mm DPNs or 32” / 81 cm circular needle or size needed to achieve gauge
Additional materials:
Locking stitch marker
Tapestry needle for weaving in ends

Finished Measurements:
Circumference 8.25” (20.5 cm)
Length 10.5” (27 cm)

Gauge: 23 sts and 26 rounds over 4”/ 10 cm in stranded colorwork after blocking