Back: With smaller needles cast on 54 stitches (main color). Work in K1 P1 ribbing for 8 rows.
Change to larger needles. Work two rows in stockinette stitch.
Work all three rows of Chart 1.
Continue in stockinette stitch until piece measures 11 inches from beginning.
Next row (wrong side): Bind off 15 stitches for shoulder, P 24 and place on holder for neck, bind off remaining 15 stitches for shoulder.
Front: With smaller needles cast on 54 stitches (main color).
Work in K1 P1 ribbing for 8 rows.
Change to larger needles. Work 2 rows in stockinette stitch
Work all 13 rows of Chart 2.
Continue in stockinette stitch until piece measures 8½ inches from beginning.
Neck Shaping: Working on the right side, K 21. Join a second ball of yarn and bind off center 12 stitches, work to end. Working both sides at once, with separate balls of yarn, bind off 2 stitches from each neck edge twice, then dec. 1 st at neck edge every other row twice. Work even until piece measures same as back to shoulders. Bind off remaining 15 stitches each side for shoulders.
Sleeves: (Make two) With smaller needles and white yarn cast on 30 stitches. Work in K1 P1 ribbing for 8 rows. Increase 4 stitches even across last WS row: 34 stitches. Change to large needles and work 2 rows in stockinette stitch
Work all 3 rows of chart.
Continue in stockinette stitch and at same time increase one stitch each side every sixth row 6 times: 46 stitches. Work even until piece measures 8 inches from beginning. Bind off all stitches.
Neckband:
With right side facing, using smaller needles and white yarn, pick up and knit 66 stitches evenly around neck edge, including stitches on holder.
Work in K1, P1 ribbing for 6 rows. Bind off in ribbing. Sew left shoulder and neckband seam.
Measure 5¼ inches down from shoulders on front and back and place a pin to mark. Sew sleeves in between markers.
Sew side and sleeve seams.
Add French knots where desired.
DEAR MRS. WICKS,
I am dating a baseball player in the minor leagues. He wants me to come to all of his games. To be honest I’m not a big fan of the sport. As cute as he is, it would be painful to have to sit there for hours with nothing to do but watch baseball. Do you think it would be all right if I brought my knitting to the games? I want this relationship to work.
Sincerely,
Fan of the Man but Not the Game in South Carolina
DEAR FAN,
Knitting was invented for just such times.
“At painful times when composition is impossible and reading is not enough, grammars and dictionaries are excellent distractions.”
Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806–1861)
“At painful times when waiting seems impossible and reading is not enough, knitting is an excellent distraction.” Mrs. Wicks
Other Painful Times when Knitting Can Serve as an Excellent Distraction:
1. While pet-sitting for your mother-in-law’s cat, after you’ve explained to everyone involved that you are not a cat-person and the only one who seemed to be listening was the cat. Knitting will relieve the tension and take your mind off that nasty smell you now have in your new living room rug.
2. At the dentist’s office while waiting for a root canal.
3. In front of the TV, beside your partner who is watching the Super Bowl. It is advisable to have a lengthy project for this situation, as it can last longer than a root canal and be twice as painful.
4. Poolside, at your child’s swim meet, in which he only swims once in the three hours and thirty-five minutes that you’ve sat waiting on the metal bleachers.
5. At the airport, after a six hour flight, and on hearing the words, “I’m sorry, but at this time we have no idea where your luggage is. If you could just be patient.”
6. On the airplane during a six-hour flight in which the screaming baby in the seat across the aisle is showing no signs of patience.
7. At the podiatrist’s office where you’ve taken your grandfather to have his toenails clipped (but can’t bring yourself to go in and watch).
8. In the passenger seat of your car, on a long road trip with your partner who insists on listening to a baseball game played by two teams, neither of which he’s even remotely a fan.
9. At the accountant’s office, as he tries to sort out the mess you’ve made of your tax return. Just be sure to nod every now and then so he thinks you are actually listening.
German, by Rudolf Hirth du Frenes (1846–1916)
DEAR MRS. WICKS,
I want to jazz up a boring baby hat. Any ideas?
Sincerely,
Yawning in South Carolina
DEAR YAWNING,
Oh my, yes! The word we want here is embellishment (the very word sends shivers of joy through a knitter’s fingers). It is the sexiest part of the entire hat-making process. Give a creative knitter a plain hat and she will have her way with it!
Samuel Johnson, Joshua Reynolds (1772) Tate Gallery
“Our brightest blazes of gladness are commonly kindled by unexpected sparks.” Samuel Johnson (1709–1784)
Look to the colors and texture of the yarn to spark your imagination. As Samuel Johnson understood so well:
Try embellishing a plain hat with simple knitted trims, flowers, and embroidery to add interest. There are many trims to choose from, ranging in skill level. These may be added into the pattern, or after the hat is completed. French knots in contrasting colors are another easy way to perk up a plain cap. Top the hat with interesting ribbons or strings of colored silk. These additions will transform the most boring hat into a small masterpiece.
I wanted a quick knit for a winter hat for my young grandson, Ben. I began with a simple stocking cap and decided to do some stripes and garter stitch rows in contrasting colors. I just made it up as I went along, letting the colors of the yarns lead me. When it was finished it still didn’t pop enough, so I added a row of French knots in different colors. Then another row and another and another. To finish it off I added a red tassel and the hat finally popped! Free yourself from any restrictions on what you can and can’t do. Anything is possible when you tap into your imagination.
When I gave the hat to Ben we sat down and counted all of the knots together. I told him how each knot was made with love.
A few years later his little brother, Oliver, inherited the hat. When he is old enough, Oliver and I will count the knots together.
Over the years I have knit all sorts of hats for these new little Wicks of mine. But the “knot hat” seems to still be their favorite. As Ben explained it, “It’s because of all of the knots and all of the love.” Oh, how that gladdened my old knitterly heart to hear. Who would have thought that some little French knots could spark such a blaze of gladness?
DEAR MRS. WICKS,
I have just learned how to knit, but my boyfriend doesn’t like to see me doing it. He says that it reminds him of his grandmother! He has a bad temper and I never know what is going to set him off. I would hate to give up the knitting, but I don’t know what else to do.
Sincerely,
Walking and knitting on eggshells in Maryland.
DEAR EGGSHELLS,
What you should consider giving up is the man, not the needles!
“One half of the world cannot understand the pleasures of the other half.”
Jane Austen (1775–1817)
It is sad to learn that there are those who cannot appreciate the beauty and the soulfulness of a woman doing needlework. You must ask yourself, do you really want to spend your time with such an insensitive partner? Artists throughout the ages have found a great and gentle beauty in the form of a woman knitting.
Jules Adolphe Aime Louis Breton (1827–1906) was certainly one. A French realist painter, Breton often chose peasant women in rustic settings for his subjects. In 1880, van Gogh had such admiration for the “painter of peasants,” it is
said that he walked eighty-five miles to visit Breton in Courrieres only to turn back at the sight of the high wall surrounding Breton’s luxurious house.
But the beauty Breton captured in his paintings remains an inspiration to many. What you need and deserve is a much more enlightened partner, such as my own Mr. Wicks, who often takes pleasure in watching me knit. Doesn’t that sound cozy? Don’t we all deserve cozy? If you are afraid to express yourself for fear of setting your boyfriend off, I am afraid that your knitting is the least of your worries. My advice is to keep your needles and yarn, stay strong, and ditch Mr. Wrong.
DEAR MRS. WICKS,
I have been invited to a baby shower and was wondering if you had any suggestions for something special to knit? The mother-to-be is very creative and I don’t think she’d appreciate the same tired, pastel baby blankets or crocheted afghans that I seem to see at every shower.
Sincerely,
Needing Something Novel in Virginia
DEAR NOVEL,
My advice is to turn up your imagination and not hold back, for as Winston Churchill said so succinctly:
“We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.”
Winston Churchill (1864–1965)
Nothing thrills a Baby Knitter like the sight of a pregnant friend or relative. Hearts race and some of the more hardened cases have been known to drool at the sight of a baby shower invitation. Finally, a real baby to knit for! What follows is a short story detailing my last baby shower adventure.
Once upon a time there was an invitation and one little basket:
1. The Invitation. It was to be a girl born in a New York winter! Oh, happy day!
2. The Basket. I set my invitation down beside a small basket on the table in my kitchen. Wouldn’t a warm little, pink-striped hat for a newborn look fetching in that wee bit of wicker?
3. The Hat. The hat was knit in one night, but it looked lonely in the basket.
4. The Mitts. Why not add some newborn mitts in a little more complicated Norwegian pattern? After three nights of knitting, that’s better! But something was not quite right. Something was missing.
5. The Scarf. A little matching scarf knit in alpaca! Wouldn’t that trio look cozy together? After two more nights of knitting, the scarf was completed, but I found that things in the basket looked cramped not cozy!
6. The Second Basket. A second basket was bought, but oh no! It’s too big!
7. The Sweater. A sweater would fill up the space nicely, especially one in soft green with a lovely leaf yoke. It only took a week’s worth of knitting here and there. But imagine my surprise to discover that there was still room in the basket!
8. The Booties. Might as well knit two pair while I was at it. Four days later, as I gently tucked everything into place, I said aloud, “Now this basket is just right!” Which of course reminded me of Goldilocks and the three bears. Do you see where this is heading?
9. Goldilocks and The Bears. After two weeks of knitting Goldilocks and the three bears, of course the basket was now too small!
10. Third Basket. But the third basket bought proved to be too big!
11. Toy Balls, Baby Shoes, etc., etc. Toy balls knit in colorful cotton would fill the basket up nicely and they make the perfect baby gift. Why hadn’t I thought of them sooner? But who can make just one? Two soon turned into three. I swore that I was really finished at last, until I saw a sweet pattern for baby shoes, which I just had to knit up in red and white.
Finally filled to the brim!
. . . I closed the lid and thought: It just needs a little something else.
The little something else turned out to be a flower/pacifier clip pattern by Susan B. Anderson. And they lived happily ever after.
DEAR MRS. WICKS,
My family and I just moved from Florida to New England. Most of my knitting has been in cotton for warm weather, but now it looks as if I’ll be needing to switch to wool. I’d like to start with mittens. Any suggestions? My younger children are happy about this, but my fifteen-year-old daughter is a bit of a fashion queen and she says that mittens are not “in.”
Sincerely,
Bracing for a New England Winter
DEAR BRACING,
You and your family certainly will need some knitted winter protection living so far north. I would suggest you knit up some thrummed mittens. They are by far the warmest mittens you can make. As for your “fashion queen,” it puts me in mind of a fashion queen of another era, Queen Elizabeth I of England.
To match her over-the-top jewel-encrusted gowns, this fashionable queen sported richly embroidered gloves of leather and silk. Her on again off again dysfunctional boyfriend, Sir Robert Dudley, gave her a small watch encased in a bracelet, said to be the first wristwatch in England. As a trendsetter, Elizabeth knew that her clothing had to reflect great wealth and power. Yet as much as she gussied herself up, she understood that it was not the clothes that made the monarch.
“If I were turned out of my realm in my petticoat, I would prosper
anywhere in Christendom.” Queen Elizabeth I (1533–1603)
What the good Queen Bess might have said “If I were turned out of my realm in December in my thrummed mittens, I would prosper anywhere in Christendom.”
Thrummed mittens are made with bits of unspun roving called thrums, knit into the stitches with the working yarn. You can purchase roving at yarn shops or on line. When you choose your roving, be sure to look for a soft wool such as merino or alpaca. You can also use roving, dyed in different colors to give your mittens a rainbow effect.
Before you begin to knit your mittens, prepare your thrums by pulling small sections of roving apart, at four inches long and the width of your yarn. Never use scissors to cut roving, as thrums that are pulled apart retain their latching-on qualities—which is what you want them to do once inside your mitten.
Give the thrum a good twist. Now it is ready to be knit into your mitten. The ends of the wisps form soft, puffy clouds of wool.
Eventually they will felt together forming a thick, warm lining. Not only is it airtight, but it is the coziest thing you can put your hands into when the temperatures drop. This is not a difficult mitten to make and well worth the effort.
LACE CUFFED THRUMMED MITTENS
Let’s Begin!
Materials: 175 yards of worsted weight yarn
Needles: US size 4 and US size 5 double-pointed needles
Gauge: 5 stitches per inch
Cast on 38 stitches, join, being careful not to twist stitches and arrange evenly on needles.
Cuff: Work ribbing of K1, P1, or K2, P2, for 4 inches.
Begin hand by adding thrum every third stitch. Continue to add thrums in this way all the way through. K around for 1¼ inches.
Thumb Gusset:
Row 1: K1, M1, place marker, knit to end of round.
Row 2: Knit 1 round.
Row 3: M1, K3, M1, slip marker, knit to end.
Row 4: Knit all around
Repeat rounds 3 and 4 six times, knitting 2 more stitches every other round between markers. Thirteen-thumb stitches.
End having just worked a knit round.
Place the 13 gusset stitches on a stitch holder.
Cast on 1 stitch and rejoin. Work to end of round. 38 stitches
Upper Part of Mitten: Continue to knit all around, remembering to keep adding thrums every fourth row.
Knit to the tips of the fingers (about 3½ or 4 inches depending on the size of your hand).
Decrease for top of hand:
K4, K2 together. Repeat around.
Knit around and as you do continue decreasing one less stitch between decreases each round.
When you have 6 stitches left, cut yarn and thread through all stitches. Weave in ends.
To Decrease for Thumb:
K1, K2 together, repeat around. 12 stitches.
K2 together, repeat around, 6 stitches
Cut yarn and thread through the remaining stitches. Weave in end
s.
Make second mitten, same as the first.
On size 5 needles, K8 inches (or enough to go around the cuff of your mitten) of lace trim in main color or a contrasting color. Sew in place, being careful to stretch out the ribbing just enough to keep its shape.
Lace Trim
Cast on 5 stitches
Row 1: Slip 1, K4.
Row 2: Sl 1. K1.
Row 3: Sl 1, K1. Knit in back and front of stitch 3 times: 8 stitches.
Row 4: Bind off three stitches. Knit remaining stitches. 5 stitches remain.
Weather report from the land of the thrums
Repeat for pattern
Several rows of lace can be added in different colors for a warm wrist and a great lacy look.
The patterns for thrummed mittens came down to us from Newfoundland, where winter temperatures can average between –6°C and –10°C. Freezing rain or drizzle, known as the Silver Thaw, falls on average one hundred fifty hours each winter. December proves to be the darkest month with only sixty hours of sunlight. Snowfall for the year piles up at 118 inches. It is little wonder that the knitters of Newfoundland came up with the perfect mitten to face such a challenging winter.
As for your daughter’s preference for gloves, I do understand. Of course mittens would keep her hands warmer than gloves due to her fingers touching and retaining heat. But as a teenager, the need to make a fashion statement can be great.
Still, fashion must finally give way to necessity. Once your New England winter arrives and your warm-blooded daughter complains about the cold reaching through her single-layered gloves, have a pair of thrummed mittens at the ready. Considering your new northern clime, she may not want to take them off.
Young Girl Knitting, Swiss artist Albert Anker (1831–1910)
DEAR MRS. WICKS,