There are many beautiful and functional mittens that represent the Northern European countries. All of these countries have very distinct and lovely patterns, with Latvia having some of the more colorful and complex designs. During the class, we will explore some of the history and the design elements of these complex patterns. Students will have the opportunity to begin working on a pair of mittens that include many of the techniques used in knitting these mittens. The student will leave with an understanding of the skills and techniques needed to complete them at home. If you are familiar with Fair Isle knitting, you will appreciate the richness of this colorful and intricate patterning.

NOTE: Students should be comfortable knitting in the round and have some experience with colorwork. Students should also have some understanding or experience in knitting mittens. These mittens are knit with fingering or sport weight yarn using small gauge knitting needles to achieve a small gauge fabric.

Required Tools

• 2 skeins of contrasting colors (light and dark) in sport and or fingering weight wool (examples are  Rauma Finullgarn or Jamison & Smith  2ply Jumper weight or Brown Sheep Nature Spun Sport)

• Needles to knit in the round (ie double points, short circulars etc) in size 1 or 2

• Basic knitting tools (scissors, markers, ruler etc)

• Eyewear if needed. 

• Additional yarns will be available from the instructor to purchase that will compliment the yarns brought by the student (depending on the amount of yarn used $10.00 to $15.00)

Optional Tools

• Headlamp or personal light