Many years ago, I developed a knitting technique that I call the "5-in-1 Pickup" (or its variation the 3-in-1 Pickup) to eliminate the gaps often left behind when creating the thumb on a pair of mittens. While I tried to explain this as succinctly as I could in my patterns, I sometimes received requests for more explanation.

So I made this video.

Detailed written and pictorial instructions for this technique can be found in the Stitch Tutorial section of my website here:

Happy gap-free knitting!