Canada· medium· informal
à la mitaine
“mitten style”
Meaning
Done by hand rather than with machines
Explanation
It describes doing something the old-fashioned way, using your hands rather than a machine or precision tool.
Example
Ce chandail-là, ma grand-mère l'a tricoté à la mitaine.
My grandmother knitted that sweater by hand.
Origin
The word 'mitaine' is old, and its own origin is disputed, maybe from a Gallo-Romance word tied to a cat's fur, maybe from the root behind 'moitié' (half), since a mitten is really a half-glove without separate fingers. In Quebec French, doing something 'à la mitaine' keeps that rough, hands-only image for anything done manually rather than by machine.
Where
Quebec
Source
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