About Us

History

Deb started sewing on her grandma's treadle sewing machine when she was 10 years old (She could barely reach the pedal). Deb and her sister began making Barbie doll clothes to sell at a street sale, not knowing she would go on to make a lot of her own clothes in high school and then fell hard into the "quilting addiction." She had been quilting for the past 33 years and found herself sewing everyday. She loved working with fabrics and selecting color combinations.

In 2013, Deb saw a pair of handmade wool mittens and heard the back story of recycling wool sweaters to make them. She loved the idea of "re-purposing" things and decided to make her own signature mitten pattern. From 2013-2017, Deb had made and sold 1000's of pairs at midwest craft shows. Her son, Ben, decided she should reach out through the internet after many of her craft show customers asked, "Do you have a website?" So, The Mitten Company was formed in 2013.

Deb lost her battle with brain cancer in late August 2017. She was one of the most upbeat, positive people you would ever meet. She always saw the good side in everyone, and this was one of the main reasons she was such a great teacher and mentor. She was a fantastic mom, a wonderful grandma, and she loved to sew those mittens! The Mitten Company almost folded, but through positive encouragement from our customers, there was enough demand to stay in business. 

Deb started sewing on her grandma's treadle sewing machine when she was 10 years old
Ben, Rob, and Blair. The Mitten Company Today

The Mitten Company Today

The Mitten Company is now run by Deb's family members. TMC specializes in handmade, fleece-lined mittens, hand-sewn from recycled, gently used wool sweaters. Each pair of mittens have two decorative buttons attached, also hand-sewn. Prior to construction, the sweaters are washed, pre-shrunk, and felted, which makes them more dense, and thus warmer. The patterns of the different sweaters combine to make each pair a unique creation, found nowhere else. Our mittens are truly one-of-a-kind.