Flip Side Hand Warmers
There is a magical moment when you learn to knit, when the awkwardness melts away, the stitches become easy, and you know… You’re a knitter! Thanks to our new Hedgerow and its festive, nubbly color-party, our Flip Side Hand Warmers bring you back to this moment, the classic first-knitting-project with a sprinkling of magic all their own!
The pattern itself is first-day-of-knitting easy: a garter rectangle you seam up, leaving a hole for your thumb. (Hello, thumb!)
But with three colorblock options for jazzing up these easy-peasy mitts, the Flip Side Hand Warmers are I’ve-been-knitting-for-years beautiful!
The truly marvelous thing about these hand warmers is how they let our wonderful new Hedgerow shine! Each delightful nub of color getting to be the star of its own little purl bump!
Made in County Donegal by one of the county’s last producers of traditional tweed yarns, Hedgerow’s 93% merino wool, 3.5% cashmere, and 3.5% mulberry silk mixture makes for a slightly softer hand than a classic Irish wool.
Still nice and toothy, Hedgerow’s two loosely spun plies knit into a sturdy fabric with beauty both rustic and playful.
Hedgerow comes in a palette of seventeen super inspiring colors, each its own little celebration, from the deep notes of Purple Urchin (above) to festive Fuchsia Rose (below)!
All you need for your own Flip Side fun is your favorite pair of Hedgerow colors. Pick up one skein of each, and get the party started!
Yarn lovers, if you adore the yarn used in this project, you’ll love exploring all of our other yarn collections! Discover over 45 thoughtfully designed yarns in nearly every natural fiber and in every spectacular color you can imagine. Only available here at Purl Soho’s online yarn store, where every skein is created with care and your creativity in mind!
Designed by Purl Soho designer, Gianna Mueller, based on the original design by Whitney Van Nes. Click here to see even more of Gianna’s designs!
Share your progress and connect with the community by tagging your pics with #PurlSoho, #PurlSohoBusyHands, #PurlSohoFlipSideHandWarmers, and #PurlSohoHedgerow. We can’t wait to see what you make!
Materials
- Main Color (MC): 1 skein of Purl Soho’s Hedgerow, 93% merino, 3.5% cashmere, 3.5% mulberry silk. Each skein of this worsted/aran weight yarn is 243 yards/ 100 grams.
- Contrast Color (CC): 1 skein of Hedgerow.
NOTE: This is enough yarn to make 2 pairs of Adult Small/Medium hand warmers in any style!
Style 1
- MC: Approximately 55 (80) yards required. We used Heirloom White.
- CC: Approximately 60 (85) yards required. We used Purple Urchin.
Style 2
- MC: Approximately 60 (85) yards required. We used Heirloom White.
- CC: Approximately 55 (80) yards required. We used Fuchsia Rose.
Style 3
- MC: Approximately 90 (130) yards required. We used Heirloom White.
- CC: Approximately 25 (35) yards required. We used Persimmon Red.
You will also need…
- US 6 (4 mm) straight or circular knitting needles
GAUGE
20 stitches and 40 rows = 4 inches in garter stitch
SIZES
Adult Small/Medium (Adult Medium/Large)
- Finished Circumference: 6 (7) inches, comfortably stretching to approximately 8 (10) inches
- Finished Length: 8 (9) inches
Samples: All of our samples are the Adult Small/Medium size.
PATTERN
BEGIN: ALL STYLES
With Main Color (MC), cast on 40 (45) stitches. We used a basic Long-Tail Cast On.
KNIT RECTANGLE: STYLE 1
Palms one color, backs another color.
Row 1 (wrong side): Slip 1 knitwise with yarn in back, knit to end of row.
NOTE: Use a removable stitch marker, safety pin, or piece of scrap yarn to mark the next row as a right-side row.
Repeat Row 1 until piece measures 3 (3½) inches from cast-on edge, ending with a wrong-side row.
Cut MC.
Next Row (right side): With Contrast Color (CC), knit to end of row.
Continuing with CC, repeat Row 1 until piece measures 6 (7) inches from cast-on edge, ending with a right-side row.
With wrong side facing you, bind off knitwise, leaving a one-yard tail for seaming.
Go on to Seaming section, below.
KNIT RECTANGLE: STYLE 2
Left halves one color, right halves another color.
Row 1 (wrong side): Slip 1 knitwise with yarn in back, knit to end of row.
NOTE: Use a removable stitch marker, safety pin, or piece of scrap yarn to mark the next row as a right-side row.
Repeat Row 1 until piece measures 1½ (1¾) inches from cast-on edge, ending with a wrong-side row.
Cut MC.
Next Row (right side): With Contrast Color (CC), knit to end of row.
Continuing with CC, repeat Row 1 until piece measures approximately 4½ (5¼) inches from cast-on edge, ending with a wrong-side row.
Cut CC.
Next Row (right side): With MC, knit to end of row.
Continuing with MC, repeat Row 1 until piece measures 6 (7) inches from cast-on edge, ending with a right-side row.
With wrong side facing you, bind off knitwise, leaving a one-yard tail for seaming.
Go on to Seaming section, below.
KNIT RECTANGLE: STYLE 3
Stripe along pinky-edge.
Row 1 (wrong side): Slip 1 knitwise with yarn in back, knit to end of row.
NOTE: Use a removable stitch marker, safety pin, or piece of scrap yarn to mark the next row as a right-side row.
Repeat Row 1 until the piece measures 2½ (3) inches from cast-on edge, ending with a wrong-side row.
Cut MC.
Next Row (right side): With Contrast Color (CC), knit to end of row.
Continuing with CC, repeat Row 1 until piece measures approximately 3½ (4) inches from cast-on edge, ending with a wrong-side row.
Cut CC.
Next Row (right side): With MC, knit to end of row.
Continuing with MC, repeat Row 1 until piece measures 6 (7) inches from cast-on edge, ending with a right-side row.
With wrong side facing you, bind off knitwise, leaving a one-yard tail for seaming.
SEAMING: ALL STYLES
NOTE: These how-to photos are from our Simple Hand Warmers + Hat Pattern. Different yarn, same idea!
Orient piece with cast on tail at bottom right corner and bind off tail at top right corner, then fold in half, wrong sides together and aligning the bind-off edge with the cast-on edge. Thread bind-off tail onto a tapestry needle and sew edges together using a whipstitch for 2 (2¼) inches. Sew the last stitch twice.
Weave the needle along a selvage for 1¾ (2) inches. This will be the thumb opening. Sew the next pair of cast-on and bind-off stitches twice.
Continue to sew the two edges together until you reach the end, sewing the last stitch twice.
Cut yarn.
NOTE: For Style 1, seam the second hand warmer for 4¼ (4¾) inches, weave along the selvage for 1¾ (2) inches, and continue to whipstitch to the end. This will ensure you have identical left and right hand warmers!
FINISHING: ALL STYLES
Weave in all the ends and make another hand warmer just like the first.
Gently wet block your finished hand warmers!
Learn About Hedgerow + All Our Beautiful Yarns
Our Hedgerow yarn makes this project extra special! Created in County Donegal with 93% merino wool, 3.5% cashmere, and 3.5% mulberry silk, Hedgerow has a softer hand feel than strictly traditional Irish wool, while still celebrating the aesthetic and integrity of Donegal tweeds. A classic worsted/aran-weight yarn, Hedgerow brings joy to every stitch!
More Free Knitting Patterns
- Be sure to explore our collection of (mostly free!) Hedgerow knitting patterns and cast on!
More Worsted/ Aran-Weight Yarns
- Shop our entire collection of worsted/aran-weight yarn
- If you want to use a different yarn, be sure to take the time to get the correct gauge. Need help? Check our All About Gauge Tutorial!
More Yarns With Similar Fiber
- Shop merino wool yarn
- Shop cashmere yarn
- Shop silk yarn
Looking for more inspiration? Explore all of our free knitting patterns and knitting tutorials, buy one of our many knitting kits and yarn bundles, and shop for beautiful yarn. We have over 35 gorgeous natural fiber yarns in 100’s of magnificent colors, designed to bring integrity, beauty, and joy to your next knitting project and only available at Purl Soho!
Can we spend it on circular needles?
Thank you,
Kathy
That should have said, can these be knit on circular needles?
Hi Kathy,
Thanks for reaching out! You can absolutely use circular needles for this pattern. While the pattern will still need to be knit flat (not in the round), you can use circular needles to do that. (Just don’t join your work in the round!)
All the best,
Lili
Do you have a print pdf of pattern?
Thank you
Anne Albright
Hi Anne,
Thanks for reaching out. You can absolutely download a PDF of this pattern to print out! If you’re on your computer, you’ll find a “print” icon in the right column just below the “Save To Favorites” button. If you’re on a mobile version of the site, you will find the “print” icon below the pattern and above the comments.
Click on this button, and a window will pop up where you can delete whichever parts of the pattern you don’t want to print. When you hover over any image or a text block, it will be highlighted in yellow and a “trash” icon will appear. Just click on this icon to delete anything that’s not necessary to the pattern! For example, you may decide to shorten the pattern by omitting certain images or the list of materials. Then, click on the “PDF” button in the upper left-hand corner of the pop-up window. Once your PDF has finished downloading, just click the “Download PDF” button, and it will be saved to your computer! (You can also click the “Print” button if you’d like to print the pattern.)
All the best,
Lili
Hello. I’m a beginner knitter and what is a wrong side row and a right side row??
Thank you
Hi Maarja,
Thanks for writing in! The “right side” of a piece of knitting is the side that’s facing up, or in this case, outwards. It’s the side that will be on view when you’re wearing the hand warmers. The “wrong side” is the opposite side! It’s the underside or inside of a piece of knitting and won’t be on view in the finished piece. Since you’re knitting this pattern flat (turning your work around after each row), every other row will alternate between a row where you have the right side of your work facing you and a row where you have the wrong side of your work facing you as you knit. Hope this helps clarify things!
All the best,
Lili
Hi,
I was thinking of using this yarn in purple urchin for the top half and some leftover cashmere bloom (white) for the under side. Would that work?
Thank you.
Debra
Hi Debra,
That’s such a good idea to combine those two yarns! It will create a lovely textural contrast. It will definitely work, but I’d recommend making a gauge swatch in each yarn, since you may need to use different needle sizes for each in order to make sure you achieve the same gauge for both. Hope this helps!
All the best,
Lili
Thanks, lili. I was thinking it could be interesting. Great idea on the gauge swatch.
Debra
Would it be possible to do this with a provisional cast on & kitchner stitch as opposed to seaming? Thanks!
Hi Jamie,
Thanks for writing in. We haven’t tried using a provisional cast-on and kitchener stitch for this pattern yet, but I think it can absolutely work! If you decide to do it that way, we’d love to hear about the results!
All the best,
Lili
I think the slip stitch should be Slip 1 with yarn in front (not back).
Hi Carlene,
We designed this pattern so that you do the slipped stitch with yarn in back! However, if you like the look of slipping the stitch with the yarn in front, you are absolutely welcome to do it that way.
All the best,
Lili
I also think that writing the slip stitch into the pattern line would make it much more straight forward. Having to scroll up and refer to another section for a simple direction is frustrating.
Hi Carlene,
That’s a great point! While it is useful to put these instructions in the NOTES section for longer patterns that mention slipped stitches many times, it isn’t very helpful for a short pattern like this one. We’ve gone ahead and updated the pattern to place the “knitwise with yarn in back” instruction in Row 1 itself. Thanks again for bringing this to our attention!
All the best,
Lili
Just to clarify, I’m doing Style 2 and also using Heirloom White as MC. Each hand warmer will have the thumb holes on the Heirloom White, and the outside edge (where pinky is) will be in CC, correct? Thanks
Hi Karen,
Thanks for checking! Yes, you’re absolutely correct. In Style 2, the thumb holes will be in the MC, and the CC will be located on the pinky side. Hope this helps clarify things!
All the best,
Lili
I haven’t knitted in a while and this seems like a good pattern to start. But .. I’m confused about the slip stitch and don’t see any explanation. Do I do a slip stitch at the beginning of every row?
Hi Caryn,
Thanks for reaching out. Yes, you will slip one stitch at the beginning of every row! This makes the edges of the mitten a tad neater than they would be without the slipped stitch. Hope this explanation is useful!
All the best,
Lili
Re: Ending on wrong side row. Do I finish the wrong side row so that I start the contrast color on the right side row? Also, I notice that there are no instructions to slip the first stitch as is indicated when working the main color. Is this right, or should I slip the first stitch for the entire piece? Thank you.
Debra
Hi Debra,
Thanks for writing in! You’re completely correct: “Ending with a wrong-side row” means that you’ll begin with the next color on a right-side row.
And you should be slipping the first stitch on every row throughout the pattern! It looks like the pattern instructs to “repeat Row 1…” for both the MC and CC color sections, and Row 1 indicates to slip the first stitch knitwise with yarn in back.
Hope this helps clarify things!
All the best,
Lili
Hi, lily,
Thanks for your quick response. Yes, now I can start the second half with confidence. For this first pair I decided to go with gray ember and purple urchin. The purple is so striking I may need to try a pair with making that the main color!
Debra
You’re very welcome, Debra!
All the best,
Lili
Hi there and happy new year!
I have a lot of leftover yarn from all the bandana cowls I made using “Plenty” and thought I’d make some matching handwarmers.
Any tips for adapting the pattern for Plenty?
Thanks!!
Hi Rachel,
Thanks for writing in, and that’s a great idea! This pattern is very easy to adapt for a different yarn and gauge. All you’ll need to do is adjust the number of stitches you cast on, so that the length of the hand warmer is correct!
To figure out your cast-on number, you will want to first knit a gauge swatch in garter stitch with Plenty. Once you know how many stitches you are getting per inch, you can multiply that number by the length of the hand warmers for your size and cast on the nearest whole number. Then you can follow the pattern as written!
All the best,
Lili
Thanks Lili!
Love this pattern. If you’re doing style 1, that means the seaming will show on the main color side? Thanks.
Hi Ellen,
That’s a good question! If you’re doing Style 1, you can weave the yarn on the other selvedge–the one that matches the color of the working yarn. Hope this helps!
All the best,
Lili
I made my friend a scarf with the leftover Linen Quill I had from my Nature’s Palette blanket. Can this be done in seed stitch to match the scarf holding 2 strands of Linen Quill?
Hi Jules,
Yes, that’s a great idea! I’d recommend double checking your gauge against the gauge of the pattern before beginning though. You may need to either adjust your needle size to match the gauge, or cast on a different amount of stitches. I hope this helps, and please let me know if any other questions come up!
All the best,
Lili
I’ve done this pattern (in style 2) once before a couple yrs back & it turned out lovely. However, now that I want to make another pair, I’m remembering that there was confusion with seaming.
If I’m on going by the pattern, it seems as though my cast on tail is on the left for the right side. So thusly when I bind off on the wrong side the tail ends up on the opposite corner.
I guess the confusing part is pattern says to orient piece with both tails on right corner.? And seam with wrong sides together?
Why is this not making sense?
Hi Jhean,
Thank you for writing in! I believe you are correct and I am going to share this with our team to have a deeper look. In the meantime, I think you should be able to follow the directions as is and then just cut a long tail to seam your wrong sides together. Thank you so much for bringing this to our attention!
Happy making,
Gavriella