Easy Knits: Handwarmers

Editor’s note: This pattern assumes a basic working knowledge of knitting techniques, including casting on, knitting, purling, ribbing, and simple stitching.

This knitting pattern is a great project for beginners, or even experienced knitters who want a brain break from complicated dropping and increasing and double-pointed needle hell. These hand warmers take about 4–5 hours of knitting, and 30 minutes of stitching to complete. 

I started with two medium-sized balls of green yarn. The lighter green was thrifted from the yarn shelf at the Hospital Thrift Store, where most of my yarn stash comes from. They have great, high-quality secondhand yarns, pattern books, buttons, crochet hooks, zippers, and more! The knitting supply store of your dreams — and, for the most part, all their yarn packs are a few dollars at most, and their needles are 25 cents a set. It really doesn’t get better than that in the fiber arts world.

The second yarn I used was a hand-dyed cotton I bought from Flock about two years ago. I was on the tail end of the yarn, which is a beautiful emerald green, and was looking for a small project to use up the scraps. After a while, any knitter knows, the stash turns into a collection of little balls of scrap yarn — which are impossible to use on anything and too sentimental to toss. These handwarmers are a great scrap project!

I combined the two yarns, eyeballing the pairing to reach a 5.0 mm gauge. I’ve never been too picky about my gauges, but that might be a knitting fault of mine. 

I used the thumb cast-on method and cast on 31 stitches. I knit these handwarmers flat, and then stitched them up the side. 

For Row 1, I worked a simple knit-one, purl-one rib. For Row 2 and all following rows, I slipped the first stitch, then continued with purl one, knit one — maintaining a basic 1×1 rib. I knit 37 rows, or until the piece measured roughly from my knuckles to my wrist. This is fully customizable — you can measure out a slightly longer or shorter piece, depending on what’s more comfortable.

For the size of the handwarmer, my set was medium (my hands aren’t very big); but for a smaller size, I would suggest casting on maybe 29–30; and for a larger size, probably 35–36 stitches.

I used a regular cast-off, continuing to alternate knitting and purling even during the cast-off. This helps preserve some stretch at the edge.

I then used a yarn needle, and some of my lighter yarn, to stitch up the sides. I started at the top, created a knot with the tail, and did a mattress stitch, connecting both vertical sides of the piece, to create a tube. After mattress stitching 5 from the top, I measured against my hand to make sure I left the thumb hole open. I looped the yarn around the side of the knit, instead of stitching that section. Once I felt like the thumb hole was large enough for comfort, I connected the stitch to the other side again, and sewed to the bottom of the piece.

I then wove in all the loose ends, and tried the handwarmers on for size! The ends were a little tight, so I decided to steam-block the pieces. I got a handheld steamer for my dorm, which was a fabulous investment, and used it to soften up the fibres of the yarn, and stretch the piece out a little further to a more comfortable fit. 

Overall, I’ve knit maybe six or seven sets of these already! They’re a great stocking stuffer gift for family members, and gives them a fun hand-knit gift that isn’t just another hat! 

Pattern

To stitch:

• Yarn needle, knot with tail
• Mattress stitch x4 or 5
• Measure out thumb hole, thread yarn through (x7 for me)
• Resume mattress stitch at the bottom of thumb hole, to end
• Knot and weave in ends
• Steam block if desired.