Bernie Sanders became the unexpected style star gift of Joe Biden’s presidential inauguration that keeps on giving. In case you missed it (and we’re not sure how), the Vermont senator went viral when we wore a parka and printed mittens to President Joe Biden’s inauguration last Wednesday.
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After he was photographed there sitting in a chair wearing a surgical face mask with his arms and legs crossed, it sparked countless memes, with people placing that image of Bernie in just about any photo imaginable.
© Photo: Getty ImagesBernie Sanders' inauguration look went viral after this photo popped up on the web
The quintessential social-distanced snap was so popular that when Bernie caught wind of the memes, he capitalized on the trend for charity, and started selling custom sweatshirts emblazoned with the viral photo through his online campaign store for $45 a pop. All proceeds benefited Meels on Wheels in Vermont.
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It proved to be a genius move, given how quickly the sweatshirts sold out. And now, many are looking for ways to emulate the look, searching for Bernie-esque mittens to do just that. So, where exactly did he get the mittens from? In true Bernie fashion, he didn’t buy them from a department store. A Vermont school teacher actually knitted the mittens for him.
As for where you can find a pair similar to Bernie’s mittens for way less, dupes are selling out too. Muk Luks’ Fairisle convertible mittens, which have a pattern and color similar to the ones Bernie wore are sold out on Muk Luks’ site, Amazon, and everywhere else.
We did find a similar pair on Etsy. Don’t wait on these though, the Bernie mitten appears to be the new ‘it’ mitten for winter.
© EtsyBernie inspired mittens, $28, Etsy
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Although Bernie's multicolored mittens were one of a kind, the second-grade teacher who knitted them, Jen Ellis, told Jewish Insider she received more than 6,000 requests for a pair of her mittens. “Sadly, I have no more mittens for sale,” she wrote after receiving them.
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“There’s no possible way I could make 6,000 pairs of mittens, and every time I go into my email, another several hundred people have emailed me,” she continued. “I hate to disappoint people, but the mittens, they’re one-of-a-kind and they’re unique and sometimes in this world, you just can’t get everything you want.”
Still, she changed up that sentiment a little and went on to knit and auction off three pairs of Bernie mittens on EBay, with the proceeds benefitting dog rescue charity Passion 4 Paws. One of the pairs is already at over $2,200 and another is over $1,800.
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