Rachel Brown Heggelia Gloves Knitting Pattern

Rachel Brown Heggelia Knitted Gloves

Project Overview

The Heggelia is a pair of seamless knitted gloves designed by Rachel Brown, featuring sophisticated cable work and worked entirely in the round. This downloadable PDF pattern produces elegant gauntlet-style gloves with intricate stitch patterning throughout, combining traditional Nordic knitting techniques with modern seamless construction methods.

What Is Being Made

These are knitted gloves with extended gauntlets that reach up the forearm. The pattern includes both a right gauntlet and left gauntlet, each constructed as a single piece worked from the cuff down to the hand. The gloves feature a thumb gusset for proper fit and shaping, with the main body measuring approximately 7.5 to 9 inches in length from cast-on edge to wrist, depending on size.

Techniques Used

The Heggelia employs several advanced knitting techniques to create its distinctive appearance and structure:

• Seamless construction: The gloves are worked entirely in the round using circular needles or double-pointed needles, eliminating the need for seaming
• Cable work: A complex cable pattern forms the centerpiece of each glove, featuring left and right cable crosses that create visual movement and texture
• Thumb gusset shaping: Increases are worked symmetrically on either side of a marked stitch to create room for the thumb, using M1Lp (make one left purl) and M1Rp (make one right purl) techniques
• Reverse stockinette borders: Purl stitches frame the cable panel, creating contrast and definition

Stitches Used

The pattern incorporates several key stitch techniques:

• 2x2 Rib: A foundational stitch pattern alternating knit and purl stitches (k2, p2) used for the cuff and wrist sections, providing elasticity and structure
• Cable crosses: The Heggelia Cable pattern uses 2/2 LC (left cross), 2/2 RC (right cross), 2/2 LPC (left purl cross), and 2/2 RPC (right purl cross) to create the distinctive cable motif over 12 stitches
• Stockinette stitch: Knit stitches form the base fabric within the cable pattern
• Reverse stockinette stitch: Purl stitches create the background and borders surrounding the cable work
• Increase stitches: M1Lp and M1Rp (make one left purl and make one right purl) are used for the thumb gusset shaping

Stitch Pattern Details

The 2x2 Rib pattern repeats a single round: knit 2 stitches, purl 2 stitches, repeated to the end. The Heggelia Cable pattern works over 16 rounds and features intricate cable crosses that shift and flow across the 12-stitch repeat. The cable pattern alternates between rounds featuring cable crosses and rounds of stockinette and reverse stockinette stitches, creating a dynamic three-dimensional texture.

Materials and Construction Notes

The pattern is written for two sizes and requires yarn suitable for glove knitting, worked on needles or circular needles appropriate for the yarn weight chosen. The gloves are cast on with either 32 or 40 stitches depending on desired size, and stitches are arranged on needles as preferred for knitting in the round. A stitch marker is placed to indicate the start of round, with additional markers placed to define the thumb gusset increases. Waste yarn is used to hold the thumb stitches temporarily during construction.

Pattern Construction Sequence

The gloves begin with a 2x2 rib cuff worked for 1 to 1.5 inches. The cable pattern is then established over the next 12 stitches, with the remaining stitches worked in reverse stockinette. Thumb gusset increases are worked symmetrically, continuing until 9 stitches are accumulated between markers. The thumb stitches are then placed on waste yarn and a new stitch is cast on to maintain stitch count. The hand portion continues in established pattern for an additional 2 to 2.5 inches, or approximately 1 inch shorter than the desired finished length.