Chipstead Mitts – A Slip Stitch Crochet Pattern

At the beginning of the year, I taught my class about Slip Stitch Crochet and these mittens are what they made to master the technique.

Slip stitch crochet to creates a dense and warm fabric – perfect for mittens.
Working in a spiral, the hand and cuff are made first followed by the fingers and mitten tip. The yarn is re-joined to make the thumb and thumb tip. The cuff is made last and is worked flat and then sewn on with a simple whip stitch.

As previously mentioned, I originally developed this pattern for my crochet group, “The Riverhouse Hookers” to learn about slip stitch or Bosnian crochet – working in the round and flat. I have incorporated some of the class notes into the 9 page pattern so it includes additional information, photos and tips, as well as the pattern instructions for making the mittens.

 

Available in three sizes, with finished hand circumferences:

Size 1 : 15.5cm, Size 2 : 18cm, Size 3 : 21cm

These mittens are best worn with positive ease so choose the nearest size that is wider than your hand.
Materials:

Thick Aran (sample shown uses Artesano Aran in Nightfall).
2 x 100g (288 yards / 264 meters) is enough for all sizes.
5mm & 6mm hook (see note about hooks below).
Tapestry/Wool Needle.
Thin thread for marking the gusset increases (optional).
4 locking stitch markers.

Hooks:
For slip stitch crochet it’s best to use a pjoning or sked krok hook (these are generally one size).
You can use a normal crochet hook. Either choose one with a sharp tip or you can carefully modify the head of a cheap bamboo hook with a Stanley knife/craft knife and smooth with a nail file/emery paper to make the tip smaller.
Hooks with blunt heads or very rounded heads are not suitable as you will struggle to get the hook through the stitches.

My Chipstead Mitts Pattern is available from Ravelry.