By now you’ve likely seen countless memes of Independent Vermont Senator and former Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders wearing those unique sweater-knit mittens and sitting cross-legged at President Joe Biden’s inauguration.
It turns out that Jen Ellis, a lesbian mother and Vermont school teacher, made the “swittens,” as the large, hand-weaved wool mittens have been called, according to LGBTQ Nation.
Ellis made them as a gift for people who worked at her daughter’s preschool about two years ago, including for the preschool’s owner Liza Driscoll, who is also Sanders’ daughter-in-law.
Ellis made an extra pair for Driscoll to give to Sanders, and those are the pair that America has now seen on TV and in countless memes.