Meddlesome Mittens

This may be my fastest doodlewash yet, as I had to sneak this one in really quickly today. Today’s prompt is mittens, so I’ve made this speedy little 3 color sketch of some. I find mittens a rather meddlesome accessory as they seem completely impractical. Though they do provide warmth, robbing the user of the ability to successfully grasp anything at all seems so odd. Thankfully, they manage to keep some level of primate superiority by allowing for the use of our opposable thumbs, but without the use of fingers, this doesn’t really pay off as it normally should. That rant aside, mitten lovers everywhere will contend that mittens have the upper hand, so to speak, because they actually do keep your hands warmer than gloves thanks to the extra body heat generated. This is indeed a noble thing, but on me, they seem to steal too much dexterity for my tastes and end up feeling like little knitted handcuffs.

The debate between mittens vs. gloves is an age-old one that ultimately comes down to a matter of preference. When I was a kid, I remember being trapped in mittens and unable to play properly, so I would take them off to make and throw snowballs, defeating the purpose of them entirely. Perhaps I just never learned the proper way to navigate them, but I couldn’t get them to respond the way I wanted while playing. When I begged for a pair of gloves, I was finally given my wish. The gloves, however, were so thick that it was just a horrible tease. I had the comforting view of all five fingers, but the complete inability to bend them, making them worse than the dreaded mittens. This, I assumed was my punishment for begging, but ultimately it was just my mother’s caring attempt to keep me properly warm in the horribly cold winter weather.

Truthfully, even today, it has to be incredibly cold for me to bother with wearing gloves or a hat. I’ll typically just rush out the door and attempt to brave the cold rather than taking the time to add the additional accessories. My hands will feel like they’re about to fall off, of course, and my ears will become numb as if they simply jumped off my body in an attempt to find a smarter one. If I’m caught attempting this on a really cold day, Philippe will stop me and make me put on the proper attire. I realize now, I’ve been lucky to have wonderful people in my life who are there to take care of me during the long winter months. I’d likely not survive them making my own ill-fated decisions. I’ve certainly grown to appreciate those little acts of love. Life would so different without them. And one learns that even the most bothersome things can truly be for your own good, even being made to wear those meddlesome mittens.

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About the Doodlewash Sennelier L’Aquarelle: Opera Rose, Cobalt Turquoise, and Payne’s Grey. Lamy Safari Al Star pen with Platinum Carbon with black ink in a little red cloth hardbound l’aquarelle journal I found in a Paris shop.

Charlie O'Shields

Creator of Doodlewash, founder of World Watercolor Month (July), World Watercolor Group, and host of the Sketching Stuff Podcast. Sharing watercolor illustrations and stories while proudly featuring talented artists from all over the world!

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