Earmuff Day - March 13th

Earmuff Day is celebrated every year on March 13^th. Celebrate this day by wearing nice warm earmuffs. Of course, if you live somewhere warm, you probably don't own earmuffs, or even know what they look like.

Ear muffs are made of two pieces of cloth, fleece or fur to place over your ears, and are attached to each other by a strip of curved plastic or metal that goes over your head. They keep your ears warm from cold wind. They also protect you from earaches and infections due to the cold weather.

Who invented the Ear Muff?

Chester Greenwood of Farmington, Maine, patented his "Champion Ear Protector" on March 13, 1877. He was only 15 when he first invented them! He came up with the idea while he was ice skating, after suffering from extremely sensitive ears. He asked his grandmother to sew pieces of fur at the ends of a wire, and that became the first earmuff. They later became known as "ear mufflers" and finally "earmuffs".

Chester began manufacturing these earmuffs in his hometown. In 1937, the year he died, production had reached 400,000 pairs annually. Farmington is the "earmuff capital of the world." Chester Greenwood Day is celebrated on December 21^st.

Different Kinds of Ear Muffs

There are two kinds of earmuffs. The Thermal earmuffs are those that are worn to keep your ears warm from the cold weather. The second type is called an acoustic earmuff, and is also known as an ear defender. The cups of these earmuffs are made with sound-deadening materials. Acoustic earmuffs are used frequently on construction sites.

Ear Muffs as Gifts

Earmuffs do make great gifts, especially if the recipient lives in a very cold area. They go well together with a pair of gloves and a scarf.

You can find several different kinds of earmuffs in stores and on the internet. At warmupsplus.com they even have bandless ear muffs. Some of the selections include faux fur in brown, black, ocelot and leopard, suede in camel and eggplant and even embellished with Swarovski crystals.

Of course you can find many different kinds of earmuffs and sets at Amazon.com. Are you looking for earmuffs for children? You can find just about any theme from Dora, Princesses and ICarly to Smiley faces and sports team earmuffs. They also have quite a selection of hearing protector earmuffs in diverse colors.

More Earmuffs

To celebrate Ear Muff Day with your children, here is a cute Earmuffs Coloring Page from Crayola.

Also, take a look at craftgossip for a tutorial on how to make a floral earmuff/headband from a felted sweater.

Enjoy Earmuff Day!

Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earmuffs

http://www.wired.com/science/discoveries/news/2007/12/dayintech_1204