December 29, 2024

Bernie Sanders’ mittens draw attention to Vermont’s winter attire

Bernie #Bernie

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders isn’t letting his mittens’ fame get to his head. 

Sanders was photographed wearing a pair of repurposed mittens to President Joe Biden’s inauguration on Wednesday and the image quickly went viral. 

However, instead of soaking in the attention, Sanders has been turning the focus back to his home state — where temperatures can get quite chilly. 

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On Wednesday, after the inauguration, Sanders told CBS News that as a Vermonter, he knows how to dress warmly. 

“In Vermont … we know something about the cold,” he said. “And we’re not so concerned about good fashion, we want to keep warm. And that’s what I did today.”

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Sanders reportedly told another reporter that he’s glad the photo has gone viral because it “makes people aware that we make good mittens in Vermont.”

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders sits in the bleachers on Capitol Hill during President Joe Biden’s inauguration. (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

“We have some good coats as well,” Sanders reportedly added.

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Sanders’ quote was posted on Twitter Thursday and, just like the photo, quickly went viral. 

“I’m familiar with the Burlington Coat Factory,” one person responded.

After his mittens went viral on Wednesday, Sanders said he was glad that Vermont-made mittens were getting attention. (Jonathan Ernst/Pool Photo via AP)

Someone else added: “They’re more than great coats.”

Another person affirmed Sanders’ logic, tweeting: “Those of us that live in northern parts of the country completely understand his vibe during the ceremony. Nothing better than a warm pair of mittens bro.”

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Though they’ve gained a lot of attention over the last two days, this isn’t the first time Sanders’ mittens have gone viral. 

Sanders has apparently been wearing the mittens — made by a teacher from Essex Junction, Vermont —  for several years. (Saul Loeb/Pool Photo via AP)

He’s reportedly been wearing them for several years — including on the campaign trail for his own presidential run. 

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The mittens were made by Jen Ellis, a teacher from Essex Junction, Vermont, who created the sustainable gift out of repurposed and recycled materials.

Ellis told Slate that since Sanders was photographed wearing the mittens during the inauguration, she’s been inundated with emails. 

“I think my Gmail has crashed now,” she told the magazine. 

“Every five minutes I was getting several hundred more emails about the mittens,” she added later. 

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However, Ellis isn’t planning on selling more mittens. Though she was selling about 30 or 40 mittens she made from repurposed and up-cycled sweaters last year when she first tweeted about making Sanders’ mittens, Ellis doesn’t have any of the materials left. 

“People have been contacting me thinking that they can get mittens, and actually they can’t,” she told Slate. “I don’t have any more, and I don’t have much of a mitten business anymore because it really wasn’t worth it.”

“It wasn’t really worth it pursuing that as a business, even as a side hustle,” she added later. “I mostly just make them as gifts.”

Fox News’ Cortney Moore contributed to this report.

Ann Schmidt is a Lifestyle reporter for Fox News.

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