How I Thrum
Thrummed mittens have been around for a couple of hundred years in Northern Newfoundland and Labrador. The term thrums refers to yarn waste from weaving looms. According to Robin Hansen’s Favorite Mittens (many thanks for the book, Jennifer!), these bits could have at one time been knitted into mittens and other articles for added warmth, but now fleece, roving and, in my case, at least, prepared top are generally favored.
Since people have been knitting these mittens for so long, I really only have one thing to add, other than my hopefully infectious love of these amazingly warm mittens, and that is my opinion that the more thums, the better, and the closer they are to each other, the better. I like a solid, warm, fuzzy blanket inside my mittens, not a sparse, lumpy, sad blanket like some patterns create. Being able to feel the lumps inside is about as annoying to me as a wrinkle in my sock or sock fuzz between my toes. Obviously, I also tend to go a little crazy with the color, which was not how it was done way back when.
Here’s how I thrum:
Get your fiber. This is hand-dyed combed top in a soft, fuzzy wool (fine Bluefaced Leicester in this case). You want to use a wool that will stick to itself after you’ve installed it in your mittens. After some wear, the thums will felt together into one soft mass. Merino, Corriedale, fine BFL, or anything that’s soft (a fine to medium fine wool) would be ideal. It will both felt together and please your fingers. I would not recommend superwash wool, as it tends to fall apart. Use top, roving, or locks of wool.* About 2 oz. should do you.
Hold your hands a few inches apart and pull off a piece about 8 inches long.
Strip off a thin piece from the side of that chunk.
Work your way along this strip, attenuating and teasing the wool apart and fluffing it up. It’s grown in length from the teasing. The more air there is in the wool, the warmer your hands will be.
Fold the ends of the thrum to the center and press them in.
Now, fold the thrum in half, enclosing those pointed ends. This makes everything so tidy. Some patterns call for the thrum to be the same thickness as the yarn. I don’t go for that! No harm has yet been caused by my super fat thrums.
Make a whole bunch.
Now, to knit them in.
When you get to the spot where you’ll add your thrum, bring your yarn over the needle as usual and put your thrum around the needle, with half above and half below. Pinch it in place with your left hand. Pull both the yarn and thrum through the stitch.
The thrum and yarn stitch are side by side on the needle.
On the next row, when you come to this thrum/yarn stitch combo, knit them as one.
Lovely!
Inside view.
Finished mitten.
Thrums aren’t reserved solely for mittens. You can thrum hats, wrist warmers, and socks, like my lovely friend Susann makes. Imagine!
Here are two popular patterns of thrum placement:
This diagonal pattern would be especially attractive on a pointed-tip mitten. You could line up side decreases with the diagonal line of the thrums.
For yarn, I’d recommend something nicely woolly and worsted weight or thicker. The woolly yarn will latch onto the thrums, and worsted to chunky weight seems to produce an ideal fabric for me. I knit the yarn at a slightly tighter gauge that the ball band calls for. This will help keep the frosty wind out.
If you’re not using a thrum specific pattern, you’ll need to give the pattern some ease, since those thrums take up a lot of room. An inch or two should do you nicely.
Do you live somewhere cold? Make some!
I heartily recommend Robin Hansen’s Favorite Mittens, skimpy though her thrums might be, if you are interested in traditional mitten patterns. I never would have known what a treasure this book is from looking at the cutesy cover.
* To use a lock of wool, you’d fluff it up and attenuate it a bit if it’s short, so that it’s about 3 inches long. Once it’s folded in half and knit in, you’d have a 1″ long thrum sticking out of the back of your thrummed fabric. That would make a lovely warm mitten.
vanessa wrote:
thanks for posting a tutorial! those look really neat. i don’t think i’ll ever need mittens that warm where i live but they’ll make a fun gift for someone in more frigid parts one day!
Posted on 22-Feb-07 at 2:42 pm | Permalink
Jennifer wrote:
Wow. You make it look so easy.
I wonder if you could thrum a hat…
I’m pretty sure there isn’t ANY wool around here for thrums. Guess I’ll have to order some next week.
Posted on 22-Feb-07 at 2:55 pm | Permalink
Noelle wrote:
Best tutorial on thrummed mittens I’ve seen! Yay thank you!
Posted on 22-Feb-07 at 3:15 pm | Permalink
jess wrote:
[Hm, did it not post my comment? weird, it didn’t throw an error or tell me it was hold for moderation or anything… sorry if this shows up twice!
]
The mittens look great! I have been yearning to knit thrummed mittens (or really, thrummed anything) for a while now. I should really get on it!
I did have a question though — approximately how much fiber (in weight) do you use for a pair of say, Adrian-sized mitts? (assuming your amounts of thrums per mitten above).
Posted on 22-Feb-07 at 3:16 pm | Permalink
Amy wrote:
Like Vanessa, I probably won’t need thrummed mittens here, except maybe if we lose power in an ice storm! However, it looks like a lot of fun, I may have to put some together for my friends who inhabit the more northern parts of the globe.
Posted on 22-Feb-07 at 3:22 pm | Permalink
Chelee wrote:
Mystery solved! Thanks for the tutorial, very helpful.
Posted on 22-Feb-07 at 3:30 pm | Permalink
Lori wrote:
You always read my mind! I’ve had thrummed mittens on my mind for a while now!
Posted on 22-Feb-07 at 4:52 pm | Permalink
maryse wrote:
thanks for the tutorial. there’s been talk of teaching thrumming at “graceful stitches” — we even carry the wool for the thrums.
Posted on 22-Feb-07 at 6:29 pm | Permalink
Dave wrote:
Very nice, and I could use thrummed mitts, being in Canada and all. The kits will be available when?
Posted on 22-Feb-07 at 6:41 pm | Permalink
Adam wrote:
Great tutorial, it’s super helpful! Sadly, I’ll have to wait until next winter for my thrummed mittens, since it’s been in the 60s here for the past week.
Posted on 22-Feb-07 at 7:19 pm | Permalink
Max Daniels wrote:
This is one of those ideas that just really make me admire us humans! So smart and simple. And the color of Mark’s mittens makes me swoon. Beautiful!
Posted on 22-Feb-07 at 8:10 pm | Permalink
elizabeth wrote:
They look really neat, but is there really room for a hand in there?
Posted on 22-Feb-07 at 8:46 pm | Permalink
scout wrote:
You rock. That’s all.
Posted on 22-Feb-07 at 9:59 pm | Permalink
pamela wynne wrote:
yes! thrumming demystified! this is tremendous!
Posted on 23-Feb-07 at 3:13 am | Permalink
Kate wrote:
I just picked up some thrummed mitten kits from Amy at Spunky… one mitten down, one to go! thanks for the help!
Also, made your “hello baby” bonnet— still deciding on “ears? no ears?” — what a great fast pattern!
Posted on 23-Feb-07 at 9:52 am | Permalink
Arleta wrote:
That’s so cool! You really do make it look easy!
Posted on 23-Feb-07 at 10:51 am | Permalink
Monica wrote:
Nice tutorial. Pretty bucket o’ fiber!
Posted on 23-Feb-07 at 11:13 am | Permalink
Heidi wrote:
Thanks so much for posting your tutorial! I have tried making mittens like this before with my angora rabbits fur but they didn’t turn out that good. I am going to try this again using your instructions! I can’t wait to try.
Posted on 23-Feb-07 at 11:32 am | Permalink
Norma wrote:
This is interesting….When I make thrums, when I come back the next row, I have to knit the thrum/yarn combo through the back loop, or I don’t get the nice “heart” or “v” shapes — I just get a blob. My first two or three pairs were just blobs — nice blobs (I called them gems), but blobs nonetheless — until someone told me the ktbl trick. But you don’t seem to do that. How is that so?
Posted on 24-Feb-07 at 5:07 pm | Permalink
Moiface wrote:
Thanks so much for this post! I’ve always wanted to know how to make these mittens so that I could alter the pattern by adding more warmth on the inside (and to avoid the lumpiness you speak of) but I have been putting it off. I really like your use of color with the thrums also!
-Moiface
Posted on 25-Feb-07 at 5:09 pm | Permalink
carrie wrote:
I am so glad you posted this! Thank you thank you thank you. I just don’t have time to get to a thrummed mitten class, and your directions are so lovely! I’m casting on a pair for a Christmas gift (for me!)
Posted on 26-Feb-07 at 1:36 pm | Permalink
Charm wrote:
I saw an article somewhere on thrummed mittens but the tutorial didn’t really inspire me. Your post, however, makes me want to try thrummed mittens! Thank you for the great post!
Posted on 26-Feb-07 at 4:18 pm | Permalink
Jackie wrote:
I love your color choices! Great tutorial too, I wish it had been around when I first tried my thrum mittens (2nd time worked much better
Posted on 26-Feb-07 at 10:33 pm | Permalink
Carol wrote:
You do the best tutorials! Thanks for the thrum lesson!
Posted on 27-Feb-07 at 12:13 pm | Permalink
Kristin wrote:
Fantastic tutorial! Thanks for the great information =)
Posted on 27-Feb-07 at 8:48 pm | Permalink
jenna wrote:
Thanks for the thrum advice! When I saw your mittens on the previous post I remembered that this was supposed to be one of my projects this winter! Of course, there’s no rush in western NY State—even though it’s almost March, we’ve got plenty of winter left!
Posted on 28-Feb-07 at 12:21 pm | Permalink
teki wrote:
Did you have “The Little Drummer (thrummer) Boy” playing thru your head while making these? pah, thrum pa pa pum, mittens look very nice and toasty!
Posted on 28-Feb-07 at 6:29 pm | Permalink
frecklegirl jess wrote:
I am totally doing this… Casey doesn’t ever ask for knits but he was very intrigued by the thrummed mittens he saw somewhere.
I love the pic of the thrums in the bucket. I wanna put my hand in there.
Posted on 03-Mar-07 at 6:10 pm | Permalink
Romi wrote:
How *completely* cool! Thank you for this!
Posted on 04-Mar-07 at 12:08 am | Permalink
Deborah wrote:
Hi Adrian,
Now I know what to do with all that blue-faced Leicester I love to buy in your store. One question: How long are those needles you are knitting with? Are you using the 2 needle in the round technique here?
Deborah
Posted on 05-Mar-07 at 7:14 pm | Permalink
Faith wrote:
This is such an impressive post! I love the tutorial and have already enthusiastically referred other knitters to it.
Posted on 08-Mar-07 at 1:26 am | Permalink
Lisa wrote:
Thanks for the really great tutorial. I’ve never seen the thrums prepared that way and I will have to give it a try, as they look much more fluffy than other thrummed mitts. Thanks!
Posted on 08-Mar-07 at 9:36 am | Permalink
M.Gutschmann wrote:
Thank you so much.I can’t believe that I have never heard of thrumming.Mittens would be so warm. sincerely Mary
Posted on 19-Apr-07 at 8:18 pm | Permalink
Lori wrote:
thank you! mystery solved. now i must force myself to finish this second sock so i can cast on some yummy mittens. i just LOVE how colorful your thrums are.
Posted on 26-Aug-07 at 10:33 am | Permalink
michelle wrote:
Thanks so much Adrian, I was just attempting a pattern that totally confused me on how to do this…i appreciate you clearing it up.
Posted on 08-Oct-07 at 9:52 pm | Permalink
carine wrote:
thanks so muhc…..i finally found good instructions!!!!!!
Posted on 31-Dec-07 at 5:43 am | Permalink
Grace wrote:
Thanks for the great how-to for thrummed mittens!! (the owner of the shop where I bought the roving wool didn’t know as much as I did about thrummed mittens!!!!!!! UGH!)I heard of them and just had to make some as I have Raynaud’s and am hoping these will be an answer for me!!!!I have looked for hrs. online for something to show me what the piece of fiber looks like and showing the inside with the mass of fiber as it is, is a GREAT help to me. I made a mitten earlier this evening and I carried the fiber along the inside as you do for fairisle even though I felt that wasn’t correct, but didn’t know any better, so continued - (it did look the same as pictures I had seen on the outside so I continued.) I can’t thank you enough!!!!!!
Posted on 01-Feb-08 at 2:22 am | Permalink