Shearling Glove

One material does two jobs here that most cold weather gloves split across separate layers. Shearling is sheepskin tanned with the wool still attached, and a glove cut from it wears the pelt inside out, wool against the skin and the suede or leather face turned outward. The hide blocks wind on the outside while the wool trapped against your hand supplies the warmth, with nothing extra stitched in to do that second job.

Wool traps still air extremely well for how little of it there is, so a shearling glove runs warm for its actual thickness rather than needing bulk piled on to get there. This differs from how a built glove usually earns its warmth. A leather glove needs a wool or fleece lining stitched in afterward, and a mitten needs a shared chamber pooling four fingers together, while a shearling pelt supplies its own insulation as part of the same piece of material that forms the shell.

A lined leather glove needs a separate liner stitched in to match this kind of warmth, and even then the fit stays more predictable than a natural pelt, which varies a little from one hide to the next. The closest match in the family is a mitten, and a shearling mitten, combining a shared finger chamber with a pelt that is already warm on its own, is about as warm as a glove gets without moving to a technical waterproof shell built for skiing.

Dry, cold climates suit shearling well, along with farm and ranch work, cold weather motorcycling and anyone who wants real warmth without the bulk of a built up liner glove. Anyone with a sensitivity to lanolin, the natural oil left in the wool, should handle a pair before buying, since it can irritate sensitive skin at the wrist and palm. Skip shearling for wet, slushy streets, since water is worse for this material than for almost anything else in the glove family.

Judge the pelt by density first: part the wool with a finger and look for a thick, even covering rather than bald patches where the fiber has been sheared too close. Fit runs bulkier than the same size in plain leather, since the hide itself carries far more thickness than a thin cut leather glove ever does. Let a wet pair dry slowly away from any heater, brush the wool once it is dry, and save washing for a professional who works with sheepskin specifically.