Solidarity Forever! A Selbu mitten pattern for trade unionists, collectivists and optimists <3

These mittens are knitted in the round in a traditional Norwegian Selbu style, using the women’s mitten chart template from ‘Selbu Mittens’ by Anne Bardsgard. The pattern was charted for sharing using the free Stitch Fiddle online tool (stitchfiddle.com). The original design was created to knit a pair of mittens that were raffled off for charity - all profits from this chart will go to the same charity :)

Sizing - Traditionally, Selbu mittens are knitted to the correct size by varying the needles used. I used 4mm needles with sport weight yarn and the mittens fit a hand 16-21cm from wrist to longest finger tip. You can also vary the yarn used - if you used 2-ply wool and 2mm needles you’d get something child-sized. It’s worth knitting a test mitten to play around with sizing and get a feel for the pattern, if you have the patience.

Variations - I knitted a second pair where I replaced the cuff motif with striped 1x1 ribbing. It would also be simple to tweak the design on the thumb to amend the year, add initials or another little motif. You may like to knit the ribbing and cuff with a slightly smaller needle, although be careful that the cuff motif is not knitted too tight as it doesn’t have any stretch.

Final notes - This is my first published pattern and presumes some familiarity with charted colourwork and mitten construction. Do get in touch with any questions or problems and please share finished photos if you do knit a pair, I would be so excited! You can tag them #solidaritymittens and find me on Instagram as @kathleenitch.Please don’t knit these to sell, but feel free to raffle them off for charity and let me know how you get on.