How to sew fur mittens at home

I was going through my winter things recently and started thinking again — how can I make good use of leftover pieces of natural fur? There isn't enough for a large item, but it's a shame to throw them away...

I had an idea — to sew fur mittens. They will be warm and fashionable. And all this for practically nothing! I will share the information I found.

You will need to prepare: pieces of fur for the main parts, pieces of leather or thick fabric for the palm, insulation (polyester batting or wool batting) for the leather parts, hand sewing needles, strong thread, paper for the pattern, a pencil or marker, a blade or sharp knife, and scissors.

First, make a mitten pattern. It will be mirrored for the left and right hands. Therefore, to avoid mistakes, I advise you to label one side of the patterns — right piece.

The simplest mitten pattern consists of three parts — one top piece and two bottom pieces, sewn along the palm line.

Place your palm on paper and trace it as shown in the drawing. Note that the joint of parts 2 and 3 should be above the base of the thumb. The offset for the thumb side line is 7-8 mm. Determine the other dimensions — length and width — yourself. When doing so, consider how loose you want the mittens to be, whether you will insert insulation, and what thickness of material will be used for the lining.

It is advisable to test the finished mitten pattern on scrap fabric before cutting the fur. Sew the fabric parts on a machine and try the mitten on. If necessary, adjust the pattern.

Mark the tested pattern on the main material and cut it out. If you are sewing several pieces of fur together for the mitten, slightly dampen the leather side (pelt) of the sewn patch and fix it stretched to the required dimensions with the leather side up until completely dry. If there is old glue on the leather side, remove it. Usually, this is gelatin, which can be washed off with plain water. If you cannot remove the glue from the inside, I do not recommend using such fur; it will be stiff and will never drape beautifully.

For the palm parts, I advise using leather or fabric — these are more practical materials than fur (it is more convenient to hold a bag, grab handrails, open doors, etc.).

Using the same patterns, cut out the lining and insulation parts (if necessary).

Sew the fur parts by hand using a furrier's stitch, placing them right sides together. Then carefully turn them inside out.

Sew the lining parts on a sewing machine. If you plan to use insulation, sew that in as well.

Insert the lining into the fur part and hand-stitch the top edge. It looks nice if the fur is folded slightly inside the mitten. However, you can finish the edge to your own taste in any way you like.