Get noticed in the striking stripes of these cozy two-colour brioche-knit mittens!

While the Red and Black of my initial design (reminiscent of the French Revolution) inspired the name, these beautiful mittens would look amazing with many colour combinations.

The two yarns worked throughout are much warmer than plain stockinette mittens, and the long cuff will keep snow out of sleeves. With clear instructions, including photos of brioche stitches and a one-page photo tutorial for Long-Tail Cast On with two colours, this is the perfect way to experiment with two-colour brioche knitting. Cast on at the cuff and work in rib stitch, then switch to brioche stockinette to work the hand, finishing with the thumb.

These are such a fun knit, you might have a hard time making just one pair—but fortunately, with sizes from toddler up to men’s extra large, you won’t have to! And the best part? You don’t have to know how to knit brioche, as it’s explained in the pattern.

This is the perfect complement to the Revolution Toque pattern.

PRJECT LEVEL: Intermediate.

FORMAT: Bookmarked PDF (best for printing or sighted knitters). See “Accessibility” for more information.

CONSTRUCTION:

Mittens are worked in the round from the cuff down with a thumb gusset, then the thumb is finished last.

SIZES:

The following measurements are hand circumferences, not garment measurements. The mittens have slight negative ease. Age designations are approximate.

1. Toddler: 5 inches (or 12.5 cm)
2. Child: 6 inches (or 15 cm)
3. Youth & Ladies’ Small: 7 inches (or 17.5 cm)
4. Ladies’ Large & Men’s Small: 8 inches (or 20.5 cm)
5. Men’s Large: 9 inches (or 23 cm)
6. Men’s Extra-Large: 10 inches (or 25.5 cm)

SUPPLIES

Yarn:

1 (1, 2, 2, 3, 3) balls each in two contrasting colours of worsted-weight natural-fibre yarn with 101 metres in 50 grams (or 110 yards in 1.76 ounces). (100% synthetic fibres not recommended for brioche stitch. Wool or alpaca is best.)

Approximate yardages:

Each colour: 65 (85, 120, 180, 210, 250) metres or 72 (93, 132, 197, 230, 274) yards
Combined colours: 130 (170, 240, 360, 420, 500) metres or 143 (186, 263, 394, 460, 547) yards

Needles:

• 3.5 mm (US 4) double-pointed needles OR SIZE NEEDED TO OBTAIN GAUGE
• Optional: Instead of double-pointed needles, use two short circulars or one very long one with the Magic Loop method.

Notions:

• yarn needle
• yarn holder or scrap of yarn for holding thumb stitches
• Stitch markers

GAUGE:

24 stitches and 36 rows = 4 inches (10 cm) over normal stockinette stitch knit flat OR
18 stitches and 32 rows = 4 inches (10 cm) over brioche stockinette stitch in the round

SKILLS YOU WILL NEED TO MAKE THIS PATTERN:

• Knit
• Purl
• Make a gauge swatch in stockinette stitch

All other required stitches are explained.

TECHNIQUES USED TO MAKE THIS PATTERN:

• Knitting in the round using circular or double-pointed needles
• Two-Colour Long Tail Cast On OR Two-Colour Italian Cast On
• Backward Loop Cast On
• Two-Colour Brioche in the round Brioche knit stitch Brioche ribbing Brioche increases and decreases

The brioche stitches have definitions and photos showing what they look like.

INCLUDED RESOURCES:

• A comprehensive list of links to online tutorials on my website for necessary skills. Tutorials are screen-reader accessible, with instructions relayed fully in text, and also include videos and downloadable photo tutorials.
• Full glossary
• Instructions for alterations

ALL SAMPLES (unless otherwise specified):

Knit Picks Swish Worsted, a 100% Superwash Merino wool worsted-weight yarn with 101 metres in 50 grams (or 110 yards in 1.76 ounces) that knits up to 18 to 20 stitches in 4 inches (10 cm) with size 4.0 to 5.5 mm (US 6 to 9) needles over stockinette stitch knit flat

PINK & BLUE:

• Colourways: Lotus and Big Sky
• Size: 4 (Ladies’ Large)

RED & BLACK:

• Colourways: Coal and Serrano
• Size: 1 (Toddler)

RED AND BLUE:

• Colourways: Serrano and Gulfstream
• Size: 2 (Child)

GREEN, BEIGE & GREY:

• Knit Picks Swish Worsted
• Colourways: Jade, Doe
• Knit Picks Wool of the Andes Worsted, a 100% wool worsted-weight yarn with the same gauge as Swish Worsted
• Colourway: Dove Heather
• Size: 1 (Toddler)

PUBLISHING INFORMATION

Release Date: 2013
Most recent revision: June 2023
Publisher: My Secret Wish Publishing
Knitting pattern type: Single Design Option
Project type: Mittens
Page Count: 13
ISBN (Bookmarked PDF): 978-1-989800-82-9

COPYRIGHT AND LICENSING NOTICE: This pattern is copyright My Secret Wish by Talena. Your purchase of this pattern gives you the right to use it for personal, non-profit use only. To license the pattern to use for profit, please e-mail me for permission. You do NOT have the right to print the pattern for other people (unless they reside in your household) or to transfer the digital file to any other person. This pattern may not be sold, copied, or distributed in any way.

UPDATE HISTORY:

December 5, 2017:

• Updated formatting

June 1, 2023:

• Revised formatting of PDF to align with current template style.
• Clarified language where necessary.
• Updated URLs for new store and social links.

ACCESSIBILITY

Pattern Accessibility (all formats):

• Colour Blind Accessible – all text is black or very high-contrast, and no colour is used to relay pattern instructions.
• Left-Handed Inclusive – instructions are given in terms of hand dominance and working needles, not right and left hands.

Bookmarked PDF:

• This document can be navigated using bookmarks that link directly to various sections.
• All images have ALT-text descriptions.
• Fonts are embedded in the document, and it retains its original formatting.
• Any charts are also fully written out.
• Text uses minimal abbreviations to make the pattern easier to understand, and is written in plain language.
• Best for printing or sighted knitters.