.And they don't do what I don't want. I'm a small woman with small hands and the XS is perfect for me. They're thick enough that I feel protected when I put wood in my wood stove, but not so thick that they look unwieldy. They protect my hands and the mittens protect my forearms without getting in my way. Having all of these functions in one pair of gloves after struggling with ill fitting and heavy (to me) useless gloves every time I fired my stove was a joy.