Inspired by mittens that June obtained during her travels in Lithuania, these remind me both of Lithuania and of England. I first saw two pairs of mittens made in this style when visiting June at her home in Cumbria. Later I discovered the wide variety of pattern stitches in texture and color used to knit mitten and glove cuffs in Lithuania. Made with a trinity stitch cuff and a simple geometric design on the hand, this pair knits up quickly in sport weight wool. The lining is all stockinette stitch knit in fingering weight wool at the same gauge as the outer mitten.

With the cold winters in Northern Europe, having the extra layer of insulation is definitely appreciated, and many of the colorwork mittens we saw in museum collections were fully lined with undyed wool yarn. June’s mittens, and several pairs that I saw in museums, were made in a normal size, and fit quite snugly with the extra layer of knitting inside.

I made my pair in two sizes because I wanted an oversized pair to fit loosely, like one pair I saw during my research and a pair of commercial ski mittens I bought at a sporting goods store, so they can be worn with gloves in- side them if desired. If you want your mittens to fit more snugly, make the smaller size. I added a drawstring at the wrist to keep the wind and snow out. Without the drawstring, the mittens fit nicely over the cuff of a parka or jacket.