Since 1991
The L-Bow Story: Kids Mittens Since 1991
Remember the sledding hill. The one everybody met at on a snow day, where you played until someone's mom said they had grilled cheese ready.
Outdoor play should not end because the gear gave out. Getting kids outside has been the whole point since 1991.
It started with a pair of socks
Minnesota, 1991. Diane Deering had four little kids, a long winter, and mittens that would not stay on. So she went inside, cut thumb holes in a pair of her dad's socks, pulled them over the mittens, and took everyone back out.
That fix became the first prototype. Diane sewed it, she and her husband Brad patented it, and together they built a company around it. Brad ran L-Bow alongside her for the next 27 years.
Two kids who grew up in them
One of those four kids was Kevin. He was three when his mom was working on that first pair, and three was also the year he learned to ski. Kevin and his siblings grew up loving the outdoors, skiing, sledding, fishing, camping, you name it and they were doing it. They were also working in the family business all of those years.
2018
Kevin bought the company from his parents to continue the legacy.
2020
Kevin met Olivia, who grew up wearing L-Bows and she started helping with the business.
Today
Kevin and Olivia run the business together with their daughter and dog, June. Still family-run, and still based in Minnesota.
What we're for
Help kids stay outside longer and fall in love with the outdoors, with gear that actually works.
Most of the good stuff in childhood happens on an ordinary Tuesday. A kid drops the backpack, grabs a handful of crackers, and heads out the door. Kids should play until they're ready to come in, not because their wrists are cold and packed with snow or their hat fell off.
Mittens and gloves with a gauntlet that goes over the coat and secures above the elbow stay on. Headwear that keeps heads, necks and chins warm is what turns a short afternoon into a long one.