My favorite projects are hats, mittens, and slippers. They are quick and provide opportunity to play with stitch or construction variations. I am also intrigued with construction and thinking through how to make something work. These slippers were inspired by Striped Mittens in Robin Hanson’s book, Fox & Geese & Fences. I loved the look of the stripes and wanted to do more with her unconventional construction.

Using a traditional provisional cast on for toe-up slippers would result in stripes with a half-stitch offset. After experimenting, I found that a simple loop cast on could be worked twice—once with the tail and again with the working yarn. The stitches line up opposite each other in a smooth line, and the cast on count is the same on both sides. See the accompanying article on “Twice-Worked-Loop Cast On”.

These slippers use a 2/5 increase from Hansen’s Striped Mitten thumb gore and her 2-row increases and decreases to maintain the stripe pattern. The heel shaping is done with decreases under the heel, and the fabric is closed with a Russian graft worked on the RS, placing a decorative seam on the outside of the slippers. The slippers are sized to fit with a small amount of negative ease.