Using Judy’s Magic Cast-on cast on eight stitches (four on each needle). This is row 0.

“m1” means “make one new stitch” by doing a yarn-over, and then on the next round knitting
into the back of the stitch to twist it.

first round of increases:

Row 1: first needle: 3 * (k1, m1) 3 times, k1; keep knitting on the second needle: (k1, m1) 3 times, k1
Row 2: first needle: (k1, k1 into back of yarn-over) 3 times, k1; repeat on second needle (7 stitches on each needle)

Note that we only made 6 increases. We need 8 increases in each subsequent increase round to get a curve wide enough for our fingers. It’s a little tricky to make an increase at the end of a row, so instead we’ll be sneaking an extra increase into future increase row.

second round of increases:

Row 3: first needle: k1, m1, (k2, m1) 2 times, k1, m1, k1; repeat on second needle
Row 4: first needle: k1, k1 into back of yarn-over, (k2, k1 into back of yarn-over) 2 times, k1, k1 into back of yarn-over, k1; repeat on second needle (11 stitches on each needle)
Row 5: k11 on each needle

third round of increases:

Row 6: first needle: k1, m1, (k3, m1) 3 times, k1; repeat on second needle
Row 7: first needle: k1, k1 into back of yarn-over, (k3, k1 into back of yarn-over) 3 times, k1; repeat on second needle (15 stitches on each needle)
Row 8-9: k15 on each needle

fourth round of increases:

Row 10: first needle: k1, m1, (k4, m1) 3 times, k2; repeat on second needle
Row 11: first needle: k1, k1 into back of yarn-over, (k4, k1 into back of yarn-over) 3 times, k2; repeat on second needle (19 stitches on each needle)
Row12-14: k19 on each needle

Try it on. If it is wide enough, stop doing increases and just knit in the round until it reaches from the tip of your fingers to the start of your thumb webbing. If it’s not wide enough yet, do one or more additional rounds of increases*

Now you will start knitting the thumb-hole. To do that you can’t go round-and-round as you have been doing. You have to go back-and-forth, which means you will knit from one edge of the thumb-hole, around the mitten all the way to the other edge of the thumb-hole, and then **make a U-turn and purl all the way back!

At the beginning and end of each row, you need to save one stitch to use later for connecting the thumb. To make the thumb connection strong, we will “wrap and turn” the first stitch of each row, and then slip it onto a stitch-keeper. To make up for leaving one stitch behind on the stitch-keeper, we have to make a new stitch at the beginning of each row. At the end of each row, we will make another new stitch, and then wrap-and-turn the last stitch and slip it onto a second stitch-keeper.

If you are doing one-at-a time mitten, then you will:

put a green stitch marker three stitches from the beginning of the row and three stitches from the end of the row.

Starting at the beginning, three stitches before a green stitch-marker:
wrap the first stitch and slip it onto stitch-keeper #1

(to wrap a stitch:

1) SLIP the stitch onto the working needle,
2) bring the yarn to the front under and between the two needles
3) SLIP the stitch back onto the needle it just came from,
4) bring the yarn BACK to the side that it just came from, 5) slip the stitch off the needle onto its stitch-keeper.

knit 1, make 1, knit 1. That takes you to the first green stitch-marker
knit to the other green stitch-marker
k1, m1, k1.
wrap the last stitch and slip it onto stitch-keeper #2
U-TURN!!! Turn your knitting over!!! You are going to PURL now, facing the INSIDE of the mitten. The yarn has to be in FRONT when you are purling.
wrap the first stitch and slip it onto stitch-keeper #2
purl 1, make 1, purl 1. That takes you to the green stitch-marker
purl back to the first green stitch-marker.
p1, m1, p1
wrap the last stitch and slip it onto stitch-keeper #1
U-TURN!!! Turn your knitting over!!! You are going to KNIT again. Go back to the start of the thumb-hole instructions and repeat. Keep on knitting, turning, purling, turning as above until the thumb-hole extends to the bottom of your thumb.

If you are doing two-at-a time mittens, then you will:\

put a green stitch marker three stitches from the beginning of the row on one mitten and three stitches from the end of the row on the other mitten. Turn the mittens over. Put two pink stitch-markers three stitches from the ends on this side. Now you are ready.

Starting at the beginning, three stitches before a green stitch-marker:
wrap the first stitch and slip it onto stitch-keeper #1\

(to wrap a stitch:

1) SLIP the stitch onto the working needle,
2) bring the yarn to the front under and between the two needles
3) SLIP the stitch back onto the needle it just came from,
4) bring the yarn BACK to the side that it just came from, 5) slip the stitch off the needle onto its stitch-keeper.

Change yarns to start knitting the second mitten
wrap the first stitch and slip it onto stitch-keeper #3
k1, m1, k1. That takes you to the second pink stitch-marker
knit to the second green stitch-marker. k1, m1, k1.
wrap the last stitch and slip it onto stitch-keeper #4
U-TURN!!! Turn your knitting over!!! You are going to PURL now, facing the INSIDE of the mitten. The yarn has to be in FRONT when you are purling.
wrap the first stitch and slip it onto stitch-keeper #4
purl 1, make 1, purl 1. That takes you to the green stitch-marker
purl to the first pink stitch-marker. p1, m1, p1
wrap the last stitch and slip it onto stitch-keeper #3
Change yarns to start purling the first mitten
wrap the first stitch and slip it onto stitch-keeper #2
p1, m1, p1. That takes you to the other pink stitch-marker
knit to the first green stitch-marker.
p1, m1, p1
wrap the last stitch and slip it onto stitch-keeper #1
U-TURN!!! Turn your knitting over!!! You are going to KNIT again. Go back to the start of the thumb-hole instructions and repeat. Keep on knitting, turning, purling, turning as above until the thumb-hole extends to the bottom of your thumb.

knit from one edge of the thumb-hole, around the mitten all the way to the other edge of the thumb-hole on mitten #1
change yarn to the mitten #2 yarn, and knit from one edge of the thumb-hole, around the mitten all the way to the other edge of the thumb-hole on mitten #2
and then **make a U-turn and purl all the way back! on mitten #2
change yarn back to the mitten #1 yarn, and purl all the way back! on mitten #2

REMEMBER: Change yarns at the PINK stitch-markers. U-Turn at the GREEN stitch-markers!	

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*additional increases for really big hands
fifth round of increases:
Row 15: first needle: k1, m1, (k5, m1) 3 times, k3; repeat on second needle
Row 16: first needle: k1, k1 into back of yarn-over, (k5, k1 into back of yarn-over) 3 times, k3; repeat on second needle (23 stitches on each needle)
Row17-20: k23 on each needle

sixth round of increases:
Row 21: first needle: k1, m1, (k6, m1) 3 times, k4; repeat on second needle
Row 22: first needle: k1, k1 into back of yarn-over, (k6, k1 into back of yarn-over) 3 times, k4; repeat on second needle (27 stitches on each needle)
Row23-27: k27 on each needle

seventh round of increases: — Really??? Your hands are that big???
Row 28: first needle: k1, m1, (k7, m1) 3 times, k5; repeat on second needle
Row 16: first needle: k1, k1 into back of yarn-over, (k7, k1 into back of yarn-over) 3 times, k5; repeat on second needle (31 stitches on each needle)
Row17-20: 31 on each needle