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Book Review: Mostly Mittens

Wow, I saved today’s post till the last minute, quite by accident. I got a little lost in the Department of Mysteries and before I knew it, it was 6:30 and I realized I hadn’t posted. I had wanted to come in here showing off my finished cardigan for my mom, but that Ministry of Magic is a bit of a maze…

So instead, I’m sharing with you a book review. As long-time readers will know, I’m a little… shall we say “obsessed” with mittens. Especially colorwork mittens. And I still don’t own any (but they’re on the schedule!). However, Charlene Schurch (of Sensational Knitted Socks fame) reissued her Mostly Mittens: Ethnic Knitting Designs from Russia (Martingale, 2009) last year and it’s a wonderful source of mitten inspiration.

This book is a must have for anyone who likes to knit traditional, ethnic colorwork designs. Much like the approach of Sensational Knitted Socks, Schurch provides a basic “recipe” for knitting mittens, and provides different colorwork charts for about 30 traditional Russian knitting motifs. The book includes an introduction to the Komi knitting traditions, as well as a quick little tutorial on different ways to knit in the round.

I love to flip through this book, looking at the motifs and the ways in which the stranded colorwork shows each motif to its best. These are just a few of my favorites.

IMG_0410 IMG_0409 IMG_0407

Charlene even includes a few hat recipes at the back of the book, showing how you can incorporate the motifs into an earflap hat, a fez, and a basic toque. One of these days, I’ll have time to grab some yarn and needles and really dig into this book.

4 Comments

  1. knitmo knitmo

    Ooh I love Charlene Schurch’s method for socks. I need to check out this mitten book.

    • threadpanda threadpanda

      I love her sock books, even though I don’t actually own them yet. : This mitten book is phenomenal, if you’re obsessed with mittens, like me. šŸ˜€

  2. You should see this out of print Latvian mitten book I tracked down last year – inspiration for the next millennium! There is nothing wrong with a healthy obsession with stranded mittens! (Alternately, you’re in good company.)

    • threadpanda threadpanda

      Did you talk about this book on your blog? This feels very familiar to me. And it is good to know that I am not alone in this obsession, though I feel like your partly to blame for it. šŸ˜€

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