Tuesday, August 17, 2010

{I'm In Need of Your Opinion}

The last couple of days of knitting time have seen me concentrating on these flip top mittens meant for my brother-in-law for Christmas.  They are sized for a woman's hand (Hence the name Lady's Work Mittens) but I'm knitting them in Knit Picks Wool of the Andes, which is worsted, instead of DK weight that the pattern calls for.  I've also slightly altered the size of the needles to make what I have on hand, so I used size 3's for the ribbing and size 5's for the rest. 

And here we have an almost complete pair of mittens.


And here's where your opinion comes in.  They seem.... boring to me.  They will eventually have a button on them to help hold back the flip top, and maybe I could find a pattern to embroider on the back?  For a guy, maybe an argyle pattern of diamonds in blue and white?  Mr. Pies thinks it would instead be better felt them and give them to one of my sister's girls.  Maybe embroidery a snow flake or something on the back that's a little girly. 

I dunno.  I've never really felted before and I worry about the unpredictability of how FAR they will shrink.  Not to mention if I make one pair for Older Girl I'll definitely need to make a second , slightly different pair for for Younger Girl, her sister.  I'm not sure I'm ready to dive right in to a second pair, but that's pretty much the only way to guarantee it'll get done. lol 

Alrighty, so opinion.  Do you think these would be good for a grown man? They are definitely the right size for that right now, and very practical.  If yes, do I find a pattern to embroider or just find some manly buttons? (I do have some antler buttons that would work... or dark wood ones...)  Or do I roll the dice and give felting a try, then embroider them for pre-teen and make a second pair for her younger sister?

Thanks in advance!!
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16 comments:

  1. LisaAugust 17, 2010 at 3:55 PM

    I think they look great. If you find a chunky masculine wooden button, I think that this all the adornment you will need. Just my opinion.

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  2. AnonymousAugust 17, 2010 at 3:59 PM

    Sadly, men LIKE boring when it comes to clothes. I think these would be perfect, with the addition of a manly (hihi) button. That's why I don't knit for men. :D

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  3. articulateknitsAugust 17, 2010 at 4:13 PM

    I think they would look great on a man. I like the color and I think some dark manly buttons would really put the whole thing together. I wouldn't embroider anything myself, just because I don't think many men are into embroidered gloves. Most guys I know like plain stuff. You can still add the buttons to give it a little flair :)

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  4. Kathryn RayAugust 17, 2010 at 4:41 PM

    I like them the way they are too... but I always like my things to be a bit more subdude.

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  5. UnknownAugust 17, 2010 at 4:56 PM

    I think these look great and as the above people have said, men like boring and practical, I would maybe go with a cool chunky blue or green button to jazz them up a little bit, but I wouldn't embroider them.

    If you decide to felt instead, or in the future, you could always hand felt them, you get more control that way. I got my instructions from Knitty :)

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  6. LarriAugust 17, 2010 at 5:59 PM

    I'm with the others. Men like plain, unadorned clothing and accessories. When I first saw them, my reaction was, "Nice. My husband would like these." Hope this helps. The knitting is beautiful. Happy Tuesday! :o)

    www.seamsinspired.com

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  7. Caffeine GirlAugust 17, 2010 at 11:23 PM

    I'm going to echo the previous comments. Men like boring. Men don't like embroidery. And they are both handsome and useful. A definite winner for a guy!

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  8. TiaAugust 17, 2010 at 11:58 PM

    i really like the color. but my bf doesn't like plain anything. what about double knitting( i think that's what is called) a little antler design on the tops of the gloves or something like that. I think it would go well with antler buttons.

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  9. Fugal LadyAugust 18, 2010 at 1:16 AM

    If he doesn't want them, feel free to send them to my man here in DK, I don't dare show him them, I'm that sure he would want some!

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  10. Liz in YpsilantiAugust 18, 2010 at 5:33 AM

    I like the idea of embroidering an argyle pattern on - maybe just a couple of diamonds wide down the back of the mittens in blue, black, and cream. Or, you could leave them as is. My husband is of the "simpler is better" school, too.

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  11. ACAugust 18, 2010 at 3:35 PM

    I think this is the same suggestion as Tia, but you could do some Swiss darning if you wanted to add color - the technique where you go 'over' stitches in a different color. It's REALLY easy. Some dudes like a little flair!

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  12. yarnpiggyAugust 19, 2010 at 2:21 AM

    I'll chime in with just about everyone else: men like simple knits. I think the mitts are perfect. :-)

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  13. juicyknitsAugust 19, 2010 at 3:38 AM

    I also think that a manly (whatever that is) button will finish these ones off nicely. :)

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  14. pipAugust 19, 2010 at 6:25 AM

    I would keep them simple and just go with buttons ;)

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  15. skyeAugust 19, 2010 at 3:58 PM

    these are lovely! i think they're great for a man- and wooden buttons sound perfect to finish them off.
    i agree with the others above that embroidery/anything other than buttons might be off-putting to a guy!
    good job on mastering flip-tops too by the way!

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  16. UnknownAugust 19, 2010 at 6:04 PM

    Want me to ask him? ~grins

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