2024 Kaasen Mitt

Displaying a beautiful beadwork snowflake on the gauntlet, these leather mittens are named for Gunnar Kaasen.  Kaasen was a Norwegian-born dog musher who delivered a cylinder containing 300,000 units of diphtheria antitoxin to Nome, Alaska in 1925 as the last leg of a dog sled relay that saved the U.S. city from an epidemic.  The modern Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race commemorates the serum run, the dogs, and the mushers like Leonhard Seppala and Gunnar Kaasen. 

Astis leather mittens are hand-sewn in the USA from light tan high-quality suede leather with hand-stitched beadwork on the gauntlet and are lined with Polartec® High Loft insulation. Working directly with a tannery in the USA, we developed a suede leather, injected with silicone during the tanning process for further waterproofing, that is extremely durable yet retains great dexterity. The length and cut of their design allows for a jacket to slide fully inside without bunching while providing a close fit that protects the wrists and hands from snow in the heaviest of powder days. 

As each leather mitten is hand-sewn and uses natural materials, each leather mitten will possess slight variation in the look of the leather, beadwork, and fur trim. Astis embraces these subtle differences and views them as unique mittens more akin to works of art.