As you well know, I love fingerless mitts and have through the years made so many pairs, I've lost count. You also know that long or short, practical or pretty, all my mitts are thumbless as well.
This must seem incomprehensible to many of you, but there are seven reasons why thumbless mitts work best for me:
1. Less fiddly. Let's face it, working simple thumbless mitts means you can look forward to a quick, fuss-free project, whip up a last-minute gift, or work on something fast and easy when you need a break from larger or more complicated WIPs.
KINTRA BLACKBERRY
2. Adaptable. One of the things I like most is there's no second-guessing, because you can wait until the seaming stage to decide where you want to place the thumb hole and how large to make it.
KINTRA NEARLY NEUTRAL
3. Nearly mindless. Simple and soothing, thumbless mitts are ideal for knitting on the go or decompressing at the end of a demanding day.
WYNDFAEL TURQUOISE
4. Purposeful swatching. Because they're streamlined and compact, thumbless mitts allow you to play with different stitches, yarns, colors and needle sizes, while still creating something useful.
GRADIENT MITTS (WIP)
5. Practical. Wearing mitts while I work and knit keeps my hands and wrists warm and flexible, which reduces aches and pains, but my fingers and thumbs are unencumbered and move freely. If I need my hands free for chores or something similar, it's easy to pop out my thumbs, push the mitts down and tackle the task.
KINTRA PLUM
6. Multiple wearing options. Because they can be worn as mitts, scrunchy gauntlets and folded cuffs, thumbless mitts are extraordinarily versatile, infinitely more wearable and less fussy because you don't have to keep putting them on and taking them off.
GREY DAZE MITTS & SHAWL
7. Short thumbs. Apparently, I have very short thumbs. I learned this when I was a little girl, just starting violin lessons. My teacher, a very talented musician from Czechoslovakia, was always bellowing (literally) that I wasn't holding the instrument properly. One day, he grabbed my hand, examined it intently, and declared my thumbs were too short to play the violin.
KINTRA OYSTER BAY
For what it's worth, I continued to study and play for years, but no, I never became a renowned violinist. Instead, I became a knitter, designer, author and blogger. And I'm okay with that.
Connecting with the linkups in the sidebar.
This must seem incomprehensible to many of you, but there are seven reasons why thumbless mitts work best for me:
1. Less fiddly. Let's face it, working simple thumbless mitts means you can look forward to a quick, fuss-free project, whip up a last-minute gift, or work on something fast and easy when you need a break from larger or more complicated WIPs.
KINTRA BLACKBERRY
2. Adaptable. One of the things I like most is there's no second-guessing, because you can wait until the seaming stage to decide where you want to place the thumb hole and how large to make it.
KINTRA NEARLY NEUTRAL
3. Nearly mindless. Simple and soothing, thumbless mitts are ideal for knitting on the go or decompressing at the end of a demanding day.
WYNDFAEL TURQUOISE
4. Purposeful swatching. Because they're streamlined and compact, thumbless mitts allow you to play with different stitches, yarns, colors and needle sizes, while still creating something useful.
GRADIENT MITTS (WIP)
5. Practical. Wearing mitts while I work and knit keeps my hands and wrists warm and flexible, which reduces aches and pains, but my fingers and thumbs are unencumbered and move freely. If I need my hands free for chores or something similar, it's easy to pop out my thumbs, push the mitts down and tackle the task.
KINTRA PLUM
6. Multiple wearing options. Because they can be worn as mitts, scrunchy gauntlets and folded cuffs, thumbless mitts are extraordinarily versatile, infinitely more wearable and less fussy because you don't have to keep putting them on and taking them off.
GREY DAZE MITTS & SHAWL
7. Short thumbs. Apparently, I have very short thumbs. I learned this when I was a little girl, just starting violin lessons. My teacher, a very talented musician from Czechoslovakia, was always bellowing (literally) that I wasn't holding the instrument properly. One day, he grabbed my hand, examined it intently, and declared my thumbs were too short to play the violin.
KINTRA OYSTER BAY
For what it's worth, I continued to study and play for years, but no, I never became a renowned violinist. Instead, I became a knitter, designer, author and blogger. And I'm okay with that.
Connecting with the linkups in the sidebar.
I love thumbless mitts - but I knit them in the round and then use a button hole for the thumb. I like your idea of seaming them instead - that would certainly be a bit easier!
ReplyDeleteI've tried both methods and find for me, seaming is easier :)
DeleteMy 12 yo was just telling me how she wanted some fingerless mitts. Never thought about making them thumbless also. That might be the best way to get them quickly to her before the weather gets too warm to wear them! And I love that you have the option of wearing them as wrist warmers too. Keep those short thumbs knitting away..looks like you chose the right life path!
ReplyDeleteYou're right, thumbless mitts would certainly be fast and easy. And thanks, I'll follow your advice and keep my short thumbs busily knitting away!
DeleteI love mitts as well (I really love gauntlets without the thumb hole because they can double as legwarmers for my girls!) My thumbs are short too. I really like the easy nature of knitting mitts, as well as the opportunity to try new stitches on a small piece that doesn't overwhelm. :)
ReplyDeleteSo nice to meet another short-thumbed knitter, and what a clever idea to make gauntlets that double as legwarmers. Like you, making mitts is my favorite way to test new stitches.
Delete