Hello everyone! I am Erin of ekaygdesigns, toy lover and advocate for all things creative! I have designed the occasional hat, scarf, or fingerless gloves pattern, but I am a toy maker at heart, and something always brings me back to that passion. My 4-year old daughter 100% believes that unicorns are real. She wants unicorn birthday parties every single year, and though she has never seen a real life unicorn, she has declared her future career will be unicorn rider. Is there anything sweeter than a little one with an imagination that will not be moved? She has inspired many unicorn designs over the years, including my very first pattern for The Hook Nook, the Unicorn Puppet ! I love that these mittens combine both the imaginative AND the practical. Your little one can keep their hands warm, and imagine unicorns leaping through the air as they play outside.
The Hook Nook Yummy Yarn is the perfect yarn for this design. It provides a wonderful warm texture for these mittens, and makes them very soft. The subdued colors give it such a whimsical style you and your little one will love!
***Note: Grab all of the materials for this project in THNLife Shop! Click here.
Materials
All supplies can be found at The Hook Nook Shop
The Hook Nook, Yummy - Cherry Blossom (A) - approximately 26 (30, 34, 38) yds
The Hook Nook, Yummy - Like a Dove (B) - approximately 92 (100, 108, 116) yds
The Hook Nook, Yummy - Blue Skies (C) - approximately 1-2 yds
The Hook Nook, Yummy - Dusty Rose (D) - approximately 1-2 yds
The Hook Nook, Small Stuff - Tattoo Ink, for the eye
The Hook Nook, Crochet hook size H - 5mm
The Hook Nook, Tapestry needle
The Hook Nook Scissors
Terms and abbreviations to know
Magic ring
Rnd, rnds - round, rounds
St, sts - stitch, stitches
Ch, chs - chain, chains
Sl st - slip stitch
Sc - single crochet
BLO - back loop only
FLO - front loop only
WS - wrong side
RS - right side
Inc - increase
Waistcoat st - also known as a center post st, or a knit st. This is a sc worked through the center of the post of the sc in previous row, between the V of the st, instead of under the two loops.
Waistcoat dec - a decrease but still inserting the hook through the center of the sc posts
Notes
This pattern is worked from the wrist out. The wrist is made with turning rows, and the hand is made with continuous rounds, without joining. The thumb (horn), and mane are made separately and sewn on. The eye is embroidered on with black dk weight yarn. This is my first time using the waistcoat stitch, and I love the knit-like look. It doesn't provide quite as much stretch as the ordinary single crochet stitch would, but it offers more warmth, with tighter and thicker, close knit stitches.
Size
Child sizes, S(M, L, XL), fitting approximate ages 2-4 (5-7, 8-11, 12+)
Gauge
From the cuff - 6 sts across and 6 rnds down = approximately 2 inches
From the hand - 7 sts across and 10 rnds down = approximately 2 inches
Pattern
Begin with the wrist, in (A)
Ch 7 (9, 11, 13)
Row 1: turn and sc into 2nd ch from hook, sc in next 5 (7, 9, 11) sts; 6 (8, 10, 12) sts
Row 2: ch 1 and turn, BLO sc in each st across; 6 (8, 10, 12) sts (RS)
Row 3: ch 1 and turn, FLO sc in each st across; 6 (8, 10, 12) sts (WS)
Repeat rows 2 and 3 until you have 15 (17, 19, 21) rows
Fold with RS on the inside, and join beginning ch to BL of last row with sl sts through each ch and BL of the last worked row, all the way across 6 (8, 10, 12) sl sts
Turn right side out.
Continue with (A) for 1st rnd
Rnd 1: sc around the wrist band, into the turning chs 22 (24, 26, 28) sts around
Fasten off (A) and change to color (B)
Rnd 2: sc in next 10 (10, 11, 12) sts, inc in next 2 (3, 3, 4) sts, sc in next 10 (11, 12, 12) sts; 24 (27, 29, 32) sts
Waistcoat st will be used from here on.
Rnd 3 (3-4, 3-5, 3-6): waistcoat st in each st around; 24 (27, 29, 32) sts
Rnd 4 (5, 6, 7): waistcoat st in next 10 (10, 11, 12) sts, ch 2 (2, 3, 4), sk next 4 (6, 6, 8) sts, waistcoat st in next 10 (11, 12, 12) sts; 20 (21, 23, 24) sts and 2 (2, 3, 4) chs
Rnd 5 (6, 7, 8): waistcoat dec, waistcoat st in next 8 (8, 9, 10) sts, sc in next 2 (2, 3, 4) chs, waistcoat st in next 8 (9, 10, 10) sts, waistcoat dec; 20 (21, 24, 26) sts
Rnds 6-7 (7-8, 8-9, 9-10): waistcoat st in each st around; 20 (21, 24, 26) sts
Rnd 8 (9, 10, 11): waistcoat dec, waistcoat st in next 8 (8, 10, 11) sts, waistcoat dec, waistcoat st in next 8 (9, 10, 11) sts; 18 (19, 22, 24) sts
Rnds 9-21 (10-23, 11-25, 12-27): waistcoat st in each st around; 18 (19, 22, 24) sts
Rnd 22 (24, 26, 28): (waistcoat dec, waistcoat st) repeat around; 12 (13, 15, 16) sts
Rnd 23 (25, 27, 29): waistcoat dec all the way around; 6 (7, 8, 8) sts
The last two rnds do not need to be exact, as long as you are consistently decreasing.
Fasten off, leaving a long enough tail to sew closed. Turn the mitten inside out. Use the tail to weave in and out of the back loops of the last rnd, and pull to close. Continue to weave your end in and through any gaps you might find, and weave in end to close. Weave in all ends.
Thumb (horn) (A)
*The horn is a bit of a novelty, purposely made a little longer than the thumb might need, so that the point of it is more prominent. You can stop and fasten off sooner if you wish to make it shorter.
Begin with magic ring. Sc in BLO throughout.
Rnd 1: 4 (4, 5, 6) sc in magic ring; 4 (4, 5, 6) sts
Rnd 2: inc, sc in next 3 (3, 4, 5) sts; 5 (5, 6, 7) sts
Rnd 3: inc, sc in next 4 (4, 5, 6) sts; 6 (6, 7, 8) sts
Rnd 4: inc, sc in next 5 (5, 6, 7) sts; 7 (7, 8, 9) sts
Rnd 5: inc, sc in next 6 (6, 7, 8) sts; 8 (8, 9, 10) sts
Rnd 6: sc in each st around; 8 (8, 9, 10) sts
Rnd 7: inc, sc in next 7 (7, 8, 9) sts; 9 (9, 10, 11) sts
Rnd 8: sc in each st around; 9 (9, 10, 11) sts
Fasten off the small, leaving a long tail for sewing.
Continue with medium, large, and extra large.
Rnd 9: inc, sc in next (8, 9, 10) sts; (10, 11, 12) sts
Fasten off the medium, leaving a long tail for sewing.
Continue with large and extra large.
Rnd 10: sc in each st around; (11, 12) sts
Fasten off the large, leaving a long tail for sewing.
Continue with XL.
Rnd 11: inc, sc in next (11) sts; (13) sts
Fasten off, leaving a long tail for sewing. Sew onto the thumb hole on the mitten.
Mane - make 2, one in each color (C) and (D)
Begin with a long tail.
Ch 17 (19, 21, 23)
Row 1: turn and inc into 2nd ch from hook, inc into next 3 (3, 4, 5) sts, sc in next 8 (10, 10, 10) sts, inc into next 4 (4, 5, 6) sts; 24 (26, 30, 34) sts
Fasten off leaving a long tail for sewing.
Use both tails to sew onto the mitten over top of the head, and in front of the horn, so that the mane is evenly placed on both sides of the mitten. Sew your second color in front of the first. Weave in ends.
Eyes
Using your black yarn, stitch the eyes onto both sides of the mittens, about 2 sts from the mane, and 2 rows from the top. Knot and weave in ends on the inside of the mittens.
I hope that these mittens find their way onto the hands of a unicorn believer near you. It is my greatest hope that these magical mittens help to reduce the number of arguments you have about warm winter wear, as you're rushing out the door. If you happen to make any, please tag @ekaygdesigns, so that my little unicorn lover can see all the believers like her!
