Snake mittens knitted in the round, featuring cable and a Selbuvott-style thumb gusset.

Needles: 5 x 3mm double-pointed needles for rib, 5 x 3.5mm double-pointed needles for the main mitten and thumb, 1 cable needle/spare double-pointed needle.
Other tools: tapestry/darning needle, large safety pin.
Yarn: DK yarn – 2x 50g balls in your background colour, and 1x 50g ball in the pattern colour. The yarns used for the mittens pictured are Rowan felted tweed in Carbon (159) and Scree (165).
Gauge: 28 stitches and 30 rows to 10cm x 10cm
Measurements: When knitted as described, this mitten is 9.5cm cm wide and 19.5 cm from wrist (top of rib) to fingertips.
Alterations: The width can be adjusted by going up or down a needle size, or by adding another row of increases after the rib and adding the extra stitches between the snakes and leaves on the back of the hand, and between the two leaf borders on the palm. Length can be adjusted by extending the number of rows between crossing the snakes over and by adding (or removing) another leaf to the border. The fit can be checked while knitting, and it should be a snug fit at first, as the mitten will stretch slightly with use. If knitting in the round and cabling at once is a bit much, this pattern can be knitted flat and sewn up the side later (substituting every other row for a purl row), or the snake pattern can be knitted without cable (extra chart below).

These mittens are named Nirah after the Sumerian god of snakes.