Mittens provide greater thermal insulation than gloves as they have a smaller surface area exposed to the cold,[1] but have a trade-off in dexterity.

[3]: 197 Humans have likely used mittens for millennia, but wool and other materials used to construct clothing biodegrade quickly, which limits the amount of extant relics.

[9] Two left-handed leather mittens found on the Mary Rose are believed to have been used for falconry, whereas in modern times gloves or gauntlets are used for this purpose.

[10] From Elizabethan times, embroidered "gauntlet mittens" survive which were made from crimson silk velvet, satin and sequins, with the thread and floss dyed in twelve different colours.

"Mittens" is a Christmas song by Carly Rae Jepsen that reached number 26 on the Canadian Adult Contemporary chart in 2010.

During the inauguration of Joe Biden on 20 January 2021, a photograph of Vermont senator and former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders was taken by Agence France-Presse photographer Brendan Smialowski, depicting a masked Sanders sitting on a folding chair wearing winter clothing, most noticeably a large, fluffy pair of mittens, which were made by Vermont elementary school teacher Jen Ellis.

[25] In the 1907 children's book The Tale of Tom Kitten by Beatrix Potter, the title character has a sister named Mittens.

Mittens is a domestic cat in Wellington, New Zealand, who wanders the city's central business district and is fondly regarded by locals and tourists.