Wednesday, March 07, 2007

Quilting gloves

I have used these gloves for quilting for many years, and don't they look it? They're golf gloves with the fingertips cut off. I've never tried the gloves made specifically for quilting but it seems to me that knit gloves have too much stretch. These are lightweight leather and with the finger tips cut off I can manipulate thread and most things without having to take them off.

But I was forced to admit that I needed a new pair as I have worn a hole in the thumb. Off to the local sporting goods store to get golf gloves, size Ladies Small. Now, if you know anything about golf, you know that they only sell gloves as singles. Right handed people wear a glove on their left hand, and vice versa. Never having played golf, I don't know the reason for this. Never knew the reason for that little non-functional snap either until somebody told me it's for marking the position of the ball - you unsnap it and leave the one part on the green. Anyhow, it's pretty easy to find a Ladies Small for the left hand. But the glove for the right hand is non-existent. At least in the store where I was. Not many short left-handed female golfers. And they didn't have any gloves for kids either.

But other sports have gloves. I've seen people with gloves for weight lifting at the gym, and the finger tips are already cut out. Tried those but decided that too much of the finger is gone. Wouldn't provide enough traction. Next, batting gloves. They come in all sizes and I could find a Ladies Small. So I bought 2 pairs (they were on special, and because they come packaged as pairs I didn't have to suffer through the clerk telling me that you only need one golf glove), brought them home and proceeded to alter them to my specs. First removed the leather label on the back. And cut off the velcro band that snugs them around your wrists - don't need them that secure and it's a pain to have to fasten and unfasten it. Then cut off the tips. And then tried to stitch on the severed seam lines so they don't unravel. Suffice it to say it's not an easy task. There must be some kind of special sewing machine for making gloves.

My new gloves won't get as grungy looking as the old ones because the palms are black leather instead of white. And now back to quilting.