Deer Fur Lined Gloves And A Mongolian Trick

 Warm, but difficult to move or grasp with dextairity. If you need gauntlets that are warm in sub arctic temperatures; this may be the approach for you.

Avoid water, but if the inside feels wet, they can be removed and placed over a hot vent. 

For the gloves shown, I used some old trusty cow split or suede gauntlets. The liners were worn and useless, so I removed them and sew a simmiler pattern of soften fur on deer hide. This was a mistake as I should have made gauntlets to accommodate a thick liner. 

The thumbs needed some fur sheared away or I would not have been able to fit my finger in the sockets.

My initial desire was to use coyote, but I did not have enough material for the two gloves. Said fur would not have made as dense a mit, but they would have had more functionality.

These deer hide gloves make a pinching hand, but because of the furs density, I can't even grasp an axe. What I can crab pinch, it really works the hand muscles.

If you choose this level of insulation, make sure the hair is pointed toward the fingers when cutting your deer hide pattern.

In time, the idea is that the material will wear to a more practical glove (as deer fur does wear with use). You may want to remove some of the density of fur by shearing, prior to sewing the material; be careful however as you may miss what was cut away, later.

It's astounding how these gloves can affect outlook and body heat alone. You may be lacking in enough torso or leg protection, but if your hands are warm, it makes a huge difference; the convers being equally true. How much having just cold hands can affect your outlook in the cold.

Because these gloves will maintain their temperature if you take them off briefly, they will also take a minute to warm up if left off in the cold. A tip I read in a book - about Mongolians of long ago - they used for warming fingers fast is to swing your arms. You dont have to do a full circle, but a brief half swing motion will get your hand and mit comfortable, fast.