Pairs of Bernie Sanders’ iconic inauguration mittens up for auction to highest bidder
Three pairs of Bernie Sanders’ iconic mittens are up for grabs — but you’ve got to be the highest bidder.
Jen Ellis, the Vermont teacher behind the up-cycled handmade mittens, said her inbox was flooded with “several hundred” orders at a time after Sanders sported them as part of his cozy, casual Inauguration Day getup, a look now-immortalized in various social media memes.
The oversize mittens soon sold out and, at the time, Ellis said she had no plans to make more. The elementary school teacher revisited the idea, however, and hopes to cash in on Sanders’ iconic mittens moment for a good cause.
On Saturday, Ellis announced that she had made three new pairs of custom mittens similar to the senator’s and planned to auction them for charity.
“I have heard your requests, and I am happy to tell you that I am making just a few more mittens today and tonight to be auctioned off for good causes,” she wrote in a Twitter post.
A knitted rainbow pair will benefit Passion 4 Paws Vermont, a dog rescue and adoption agency in Shelburne, Ellis said. The hand coverings had 76 bids as of Monday evening, with the highest going for $2,425.
The second pair of “Bernie-style mittens” was donated to Outright Vermont, a local nonprofit supporting the state’s LGBTQ+ youth. Dana Kaplan, executive director of the organization, said Ellis’ now-famous mittens were symbolic in that they “create warmth and a level of love,” according to NBC 10.
“They are homemade and unique and I think it’s a beautiful metaphor for LGBTQ youth in Vermont and across the country,” Kaplan said, the news station reported. “I think we could all use a little levity and this meme moment is certainly significant.”
Ellis is auctioning the third pair of blue mittens on eBay to raise money for her daughter’s college fund. As of Monday, bids for that auction reached $1,976.
In an update, Ellis said she received call from Sanders saying the mitten madness had already brought in “an enormous amount of money” since the auctions went live Sunday.
“I am not authorized to disclose the amount yet,” Ellis tweeted, “but it’s BIG and it’s amazing! Thank you!! Generosity brings joy.”
Bidding closes Friday.
This story was originally published January 25, 2021 at 7:13 PM with the headline "Pairs of Bernie Sanders’ iconic inauguration mittens up for auction to highest bidder."