You Call This Spring?
The windchill was -26 C (-15 F) this morning as I headed out to wait for the bus. Feh. Well, I guess that's an improvement over two weeks ago when it was -43 C (-45 F). No, I'm not making this up. Check it out and you will see that in Ottawa it was 20 centigrade degrees (36 Farenheit degrees) warmer on the first day of Winter than on the first day of Spring. Feh again.
Oh well. It was good weather for making mittens.
Yarn: Trekking XXL #100 (20 g per mitten)
Needles: 2.75 mm
Pattern: Mine; very basic ambidextrous mitten with thumb gusset
Nothing fancy, but I did do a tubular cast on, which I love.
These mittens are meant to be liner mittes, i.e worn inside another pair when it is cold. Or worn alone in July when maybe the temperature will be above freezing.
I designed another mitt to go over the first pair. Does the stitch pattern look familiar?
Oh wait. How 'bout now? 
It's heel stitch, the same one I use on the heel flaps of all the socks I knit. I have often thought that with its cushy pseudo-strandedness that it would make good mittens, and I have proved myself correct.
Here are the liner mitt (above) and the over mitt (below) (heh).
Put together, ...
and modelled.
One can also roll the cuff of the inner mitt over the bottom of the outer mitt to lock them together.
I can't even tell you how pleased I am with this mitten. I understand completely how Lene feels about her double layer mittens.
Sadly, although it weighs in at only 25 grams, I don't have quite enough of the ball left to make another one. How can that be? Well, I did use several grams in assorted swatches, and at this time of the year, what with the extra dry indoor air that comes with having our friggin' furnaces on all the time, a ball of yarn that weighs 100 g "under standard conditions" now weighs closer to 90.
But fear not. I ordered three more balls and I'm sure it will get here before July. In the meantime I'm turning one of these into this.
OKay, so am I so stupid I can not follow a link. Norma sent us here to find your wonderful liner mittens pattern and I do not see it. Please help, it must be too early or I have not had my coffee yet, oh yes, that is it. Please direct us to your great pattern.
these mittens are gorgeous. I love that trekking shade. After several lovely days, we had a nasty cold snap in London. 2 layers mitts would had been perfect
Those mittens are gorgeous! I love them.
Great use of Trekking AND of heel stitch. I like the doubleness. We got snow last night in Massachusetts.
I do love those mittens! and that heel flap stitch just makes that outer mit so much more sturdy, and warmer, brilliant!
Lovely mittens, are they double thickness of yarn or single?
OMG, Paula, I LOVE them even more than I knew I would. I must get started on mine! Fun, fun, fun.