The Lindal Mitten is part of my Lindal Collection. The design features a beautiful blend of short-row shapes with stranded colorwork. It also uses two different braid/plait techniques: the Lateral Braid, and a Latvian Plait. Both of these techniques are easy to learn even for the novice knitter. Several Youtube links are included in the pattern for reference.

This pattern also includes a vector art diagram for yarn placement. If you have a bunch of partial ball windings or scraps from previous sock projects that you would like to use up, it makes the perfect stash buster!

Notes:

Size: The pattern is written as One Size with measurements as follows: Palm Height from Wrist app. 6.5” (16.5cm), Width at Wrist app. 4” (10cm), Total Height with Cuff 9.5” (24.5cm). For additional length, it is recommended that you add stitches to the plain garter section at the top of the hand. For additional width, I recommend moving up a needle size.

Fit: I like a mitten to fit snugly around my wrist. The lateral braids and Latvian plait section at this juncture helps to pull in the body of the mitten to create a good fit. The stranded colorwork part of the design then extends up the arm a short way to really make a very useful and attractive winter accessory.

Yarn: Plied Yarn Company creates a beautiful yarn called North Avenue Fingering. It is very different from other yarns I’ve worked with and is perfect for this application. The yarn is non-superwash, which lends itself to being a very warm choice for mittens, as well as having the properties known to wool including wicking moisture away from the body while trapping in warm air. Due to the higher lanolin content, the yarn is also better at protecting the hands from harsh winter conditions. I used app. 50g for the MC (you may need more if you are a looser knitter), and 30g for CC. Plied sells their yarns as full skeins, or for a fun scrappy mitten, they also sell bobbin sets with a range of colors in different palettes.

Links:
Learning the Latvian Braid - A great video tutorial can be found online by the Paper Tiger, entitled “How to work a Latvian braid in the round | KNITTING TUTORIAL” at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAmDr9UKrH0

The stranded colorwork used in this pattern entails several sections of long interior floats. You will want to catch these as you knit using any method you prefer. A great video example of this is available by Knit Purl Hunter, called “Stranded Knitting - Catching Long Floats” at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bD7arufsuvg