My hunny saw something like these in Big Sur, and I commented that I could easily make them to order for a fraction of the price (after all, I don’t charge for my own time ^_^). These were made to look as much like Link’s arm covering from Ocarina of Time as I could make them without driving myself crazy with an intricate pattern. The first one was done straight up the arm, which fit nicely at the wrist but was too tight up near the elbow. So, I did a second one with more sts cast on that decreased down to where the first one had been. My hunny’s only problem with them is that they were finished about the time the weather warmed up, so he hasn’t had a chance to wear them much yet :-).
Accessories: Ocarina of Time from Songbird Ocarinas, Master Sword from Amazon (my birthday present to Roland last year, though the price has gone way up!)
Yarn: Paton’s Classic Wool, Taupe, one 3.5 oz. skein was more than enough (see note below).
Gauge: 6 sts = 1″, 7 rows = 1″
PATTERN: I looked at several fingerless glove patterns, but ended up using this 2-Needle Fingerless Mittens pattern (previously available for free on knitpicks.com) for a starting point. I used double-pointed needles instead of knitting flat, and worked out my own design instead of using their ribbing. I also added stitches at the beginning and decreased down to the wrist, so they’re not too tight at the elbow end. Yet again, I didn’t write down what size needles I used :-(. The yarn wrapper suggests size 7, but I wanted a tighter knit so I’m guessing I used 5’s.
Cuffs: Cast on 46 sts, distribute over three dp needles. Make sure you don’t twist the sts when starting the first row :-).
Row 1: P1, K22, P1, K22. (Note: the P sts every other row form mock seams. If you don’t want these, then just K those sts. Also, the seam isn’t worked on the all-P rows.)
Row 2: K46.
Rows 3-11: Repeat rows 1-2.
Row 12: K21, Dec1, K21, Dec1 (44 sts remaining).
Rows 13-19: P44.
Row 20: P1, Dec1, K19, P1, Dec1, K19 (42 sts remaining).
Row 21: K42.
Row 22: P1, K20, P1, K20.
Rows 23-30: Repeat rows 21-22.
Row 31: K19, Dec1, K19, Dec1 (40 sts remaining).
Rows 32-38: P40.
Row 39: P1, Dec1, K17, P1, Dec1, K17 (38 sts remaining).
Row 40: K38.
Row 41: P1, K18, P1, K18.
Rows 42-49: Repeat row 40-41.
Row 50: K17, Dec1, K17, Dec1 (36 sts remaining).
Rows 51-58: P36.
If desired, work a few more rows in K with P1 at each mock seam. Look at your gauge to see how long the gusset will be and adjust accordingly.
Thumb gusset: P1, K1, place marker, K3, place marker, K13, P1, K17.
Gusset Row 2: K around.
Gusset Row 3: P1, K1, sl marker, inc 1, K1, inc 1, work even to end.
Gusset Rows 4-6: work even, remembering to P on mock seam every other row.
Repeat Gusset Rows 3-6 until there are 15 sts between the markers. End with Gusset Row 5.
Next row: P1, K1, bind off 15 sts, work even to end of row. (NOTE: you’ll want to use a stretchy method, like perhaps a decrease or sewn bind-off. I hadn’t learned those yet, so I just used a needle a couple of sizes bigger. If you use a traditional “simple” BO, purling-off makes a nice edge.)
Hand: P1, K1, cast on 3 sts (original instructions called for backward loop; I used knitting-on), work remaining sts in pattern.
Row 2 and beyond: Work in pattern until hand is desired length — I did 12 rows. Bind off, again using a loose method (same notes as the thumb gusset apply).
Finishing: work in ends :-).
Now, since I used the mock seam and did the thumb on one side, the second glove needs the thumb to be on the other side of the seam. So, work the gusset at the end of the row instead of the beginning, being sure to leave one K st next to the “seam.” If you’re not marking seams, both gloves can be worked the same, since only the mock seam makes them right- or left-handed.
Please, if you notice any problems with these instructions, let me know so I can fix them!
Afterthoughts:
Working on these, I’ve realized that I really like the feel of working with wool versus acrylic. OTOH, Project Linus blankets need to be machine washable, and wool is most certainly not suited to that level of care (unless you want a nicely felted doll blanket *g*). So I did a little research, and discovered Warm Woolies — Charity Knitting for Orphans (Note: Warm Woolies is now defunct, and the warmwoolies.org web site is now a casino). They prefer wool for its thermal qualities, and it’ll give me an excuse to play with double knitting, which I’ve just discovered. The idea of knitting two socks as the same time intrigues me, and if nothing else it’ll be a nice addition to my knit-fu :-). I’ll still work on blankets for Project Linus, though, since sometimes I want something that the hands can do while the eyes and brain are doing something else. Extreme Knitting doesn’t qualify :-).
Yarn note: Paton’s Classic Wool of this type does not seem to be available now. For reference finding a substitute, these are the particulars:
* ultra soft yarn
* Dimension: 3.5 oz/100gm; 223 yds
* Content: 100% wool
* Gauge: 4 in = 20 stitches on size 7 needles
* Recommended Crochet Hook Size: 7
* Care: Dry flat, hand wash
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