OPERA MITTENS

As a child, have you ever played dress-up, pretending to be The Glamorous Adults? My own memory 
of this involves a pair of past-the-elbow gloves - like the kind one would have worn to the opera a century ago. Fished out of a musty old trunk along with some strings of beads, folding fans, sequinned fascinators and such, these items made us quite the caricature of ‘glamour’! 


I was reminded of this recently watching a fashion runway show, where the models wore evening gowns accessorised with long, slouchy mittens. The look was so deliciously absurd, that I immediately wanted to make myself a pair - as a sort of jokey homage to those childhood dress-up games. 


Then, the more I considered it, the more I began to realise how practical such mittens could be. 
 Paired, for example, with a sleeveless puffy jacket, they could perform the function of mittens and arm warmers combined. Who knows, these could be the accessory you did not know you needed! 
Alternatively, try the ‘Operetta’ length for the same aesthetic with a shorter cuff.

Stitch counts are provided for fingering-weight yarn and for light DK-weight yarn, with separate instructions for working cuff-up and tip-down.

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MATERIALS & INFORMATION

CONSTRUCTION
these mittens can be worked cuff-up or tip-down, with thumb construction via gusset at side



SIZING

Size 1 (2)
Choose Size & Yarn as follows -


for a child with bicep circumference up to 20cm/ 8”

choose fingering weight option and follow instructions for Size 1


for an adult with bicep circumference up to 32cm/ 13”

choose fingering weight option and follow instructions for Size 2, or
choose light DK-weight option and follow instructions for Size 1


for an adult with bicep circumference over 32cm/ 13”

choose light DK-weight option and follow instructions for Size 2



CUFF LENGTH OPTIONS

Opera Length: Cuff measures 50cm/ 20”

Operetta Length: Cuff measures 17cm/ 7”



GAUGE

Light DK-weight Option: 24 sts per 10cm/4”

Fingering-weight Option: 32 sts per 10cm/ 4”

NEEDLES
Circular needles suitable for Magic Loop, sized as follows -
Needle A:
Light DK-weight Option: 3.25mm (US 3)

Fingering-weight Option: 2.5mm (US 2)
Needle B (optional): 0.5mm (one US size) bigger than Needle A.

Needle C (optional): 0.5mm (one US size) smaller than Needle A.



YARN

Light DK-weight Option: 

suitable for yarns approximately 250m (273y) per 100g/ 3.5oz

Opera Length requires 2 (3) 100g skeins

Operetta Length requires 1 (2) 100g skeins

Fingering-weight Option: 

suitable for yarns approximately 400m (420y) per 100g/ 3.5oz

Opera Length requires 1 (2) 100g skeins

Operetta Length requires one 100g skein for all sizes


NOTIONS

scrap yarn, measuring tape, stitch markers, tapestry needle 



TECHNIQUES

Magic Loop, Kitchener stitch;

Tip Down Version also calls for Judy’s Magic Cast-on and Provisional Cast-On

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SAMPLES INFO.

blue mittens are light-DK, Opera length, size 1
knitted with Ewe Momma BFL-Gotland DK
in the Malice Through the Looking Glass colourway

pink mittens are fingering-weight, Operetta length, size 2
knitted with Ewe Momma BFL Ultimate Sock
in the Rosebud colourway