Friday 30 August 2013

Owl Fetchings//FO Friday and Year of Projects

You know when you find a pattern that you love, and it takes just a week to knit, bead and block the item? Yeah that. These mitts took me just 8 days to complete, I could have finished them quicker but I've been doing a little bit of designing and some painting. I absolutely loved knitting these AND I made a few modifications to the pattern:
 
I purchased the yarn for these mitts back in April; it's Debbie Bliss Rialto Aran and I used about 1.25 balls. I cast on using a 3.75mm needle instead of a 4mm just to get a tighter knit:

 I made appropriate modifications for the length as I have quite long hands, and I wanted these to sit just past my wrists - so I added in some ribbing rows both before and after the thumb:
 I found these owls super easy to cable, and in actual fact the whole pattern was easy to memorize and just knit up - I love when you find an easy, fun knit that looks awesome:
 I had to pick up stitches for the thumb, and to be honest that was the only place I found a slight issue with the pattern - if I knit them again (which I probably will), I will pick up extra stitches as I had to reinforce the base stitches. However the thumb did come out well after those minor technical issues:
I chose to put just 2 beads on each mitt, because these beads really stand out and I wanted the owl pattern to show but to be quite strong. This last photo shows both the mitts, and our cat Bilbo who wanted attention!!!
I am super happy with my first autumn/winter project this year; I am hoping for chilly weather to come soon so I can wear them!!!
This post is part of my year of projects as I've used 2 of the techniques I wanted to have a go at - modification and picking up stitches. I'm also playing along with FO Friday and Tami.
What have you finished this week?
V xo

15 comments:

  1. Oh they look cosy, and I love the colour of yarn you have used to make them and the little detail on them he he.

    Also I can't wait for chilly weather to come so I can get all snuggled and cosied up with yarny warm things.

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  2. They are gorgeous. I love those two little beaded eyes! THey make the owl-ness so clear! And what lovely yarn too! Beautiful!

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  3. They look lovely. I really like the name Bilbo for a cat too lol

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  4. Lovely photos. Lovely mitts. Lovely Cat. :)

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  5. Awesome mittens!

    Here's my FO: http://mibruno.com/terminada-alicia/

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  6. Awesome mittens!

    Here's my FO: http://mibruno.com/terminada-alicia/

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  7. Oh they turned out beautifully! I've wanted to knit these for awhile...

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  8. The mitts are adorable! I love how they look with just 2 beads on each mitt. I want to make a pair now.

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  9. Absolutely gorgeous!!! Great pattern and lovely color!

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  10. Lovely! What kind of beads did you use for the eyes?

    Mahalo

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  11. These mitts are completely gorgeous! Such a beautiful colour too. I bet you can't wait to wear them...
    M x

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  12. Amazing... I love them... Those owls are so wonderfully subtle... :)

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