CHICAGO — Annie Hemmesch knew there was a market for high-tech winter gloves when she saw her mother answer an iPhone call from her father.
“She brought it to her face and slid her nose on it,” Hemmesch, of Chicago, said. “She said it was too cold to take her gloves off.”
Last February, Hemmesch, her mother and sister started selling Telefingers gloves made by threading the thumbs, pointer fingers and middle fingers with conductive material that allows wearers to use touchscreen devices while keeping their hands warm.
The gloves are just one example of the influence that fashion and technology have had on cold-weather clothing this winter, providing more efficient but still stylish designs.
Suzanne Kopulos, co-founder and style director at the Chicago-based fashion blog Garmental.com, said she’s seen boutiques increasingly stocking neck warmers, infinity scarves and looped cowls instead of traditional scarves.