Baby It's Cold Outside: A Mittens Tutorial

Well, the weather here in MI definitely turned into winter this week, so it was time to drag out the hats & gloves. Except I could only find 1 of Ethan's mittens. I know buying a replacement pair isn't very expensive, but they usually aren't all that warm or well made (half of them sport holes within the first week). And forget about trying to find any that match the coat or look cute (which may explain why it's so easy to lose them). So I decided I'd make a spiffy, new pair using scrap fleece I had left from some old projects. Here's how:

First, I examined the mitten I had & saw it was made from 4 pieces. I traced them and added an extra 1inch around them. I cut out 2 of each piece (reversing the sides so there'd be a left & right). I wanted these to be extra warm so I cut out another set in a solid fleece to make a lining layer.


I marked the wrong sides on each piece so I wouldn't mismatch any (it can be hard to figure out front & back on some fleece) and then pinned the small thumb piece to the curved palm piece, right sides facing & stitched them together with a 1/2in seam allowance.

I did the same with the longer thumb & top mitten pieces. I then pinned & stitched the two halves together. I did this for both hands and with both inner & outer fabric, so I had four "mittens".
I trimmed the excess fabric so they'd fit together well.

I opted for adding some elastic to the wrist of the wrong side of the inner fabric. I stitched it about 1 1/4 inches from the raw cuff edge. I used 1/4in elastic and cut pieces that were 1in longer than his wrist measurement and stitched it on, pulling it taut as I went.


I turned the outer mittens right side out and fit the inner inside, so the wrong sides were together and folded in the raw edges and topstitched around the edge to attach them.


All done! I literally had the idea to do this, worked out the plan & whipped them up in an evening, so not hard to do & well worth the effort: perfect fit, cozy warm, fun looking and cost nothing. What could be better?


I've added this to Creative Cats at Poppies At Play and the SOYS Party at Fireflies & Jellybeans. Check out both great sites for more cool project ideas.