WHAT'S BEHIND THE GLOVE?

June 10, 2024

What's Behind The Glove

She looked around, feeling isolated and detached from all the other women in the room. She wasn’t trained on how to properly wear gloves. Looking at her hands then looking around at everyone else, she looked down and her mind began to race. She thought to herself “Do these gloves make my hands look fat? Maybe my fingers look like the gloves are too tight? Do I have these gloves on right?” She wanted to know what the rules were. Under those gloves were hard working hands. The first rule was to never go outside without wearing your gloves. Gloves that didn’t fit properly meant you were low class. She noticed her gloves looked so plain next to the other ladies. Their gloves were extravagant, embroidered, embellished, and a lot of womens' gloves matched their outfits. She dreamed of wearing gloves with such lavish designs, embroidered with embellishments to match her clothing. Not only were gloves stylish, but also a necessity.

There was a time when gloves had different meanings. Historically, any proper lady wouldn’t be caught without gloves, no matter how much money you had, or didn’t have, you always had gloves on. There was a time gloves stood for social status. Gloves were adorned by royalty and high ranking people in society. Women of wealth were sending others a message...that she was a woman of leisure. Women also wanted to keep their hands pale, soft, and delicate. Hard working women of labor wore gloves also, but it was because they wanted to hide their tan ruggish hands, they didn't want others to think less of them. Hard working women didn't want everyone knowing of their working class status. Women that didn't come from money didn't want people to see their rough skin.

There were rules to wearing gloves, they were not just an accesory. Gloves were supposed to be worn and not carried around. You didn't wear gloves while eating or drinking, and usually you would take off a glove to shake someones hand. One didn't just throw a pair of gloves on though, there was an important rule you had to go by. It was a good rule and a rule women in modern times should also follow when wearing gloves. Following the "good rule" is of importance. The "good rule" to go by is don’t make your gloves look like a costume, unless you’re wearing a costume.

In this era today it is hard to think of wearing gloves daily, unless it was to keep your hands warm. Gloves today can even be worn as a winter accessory. You might also find a women wearing gloves to a wedding, on a special occasion, or if it’s cold outside, but rarely will you see a lady wearing a driving glove. You will hardly ever see a woman wearing a pair of gloves if she's going out to dinner, or as an everyday accessory. I can only imagine a time when women went, "Glove Shopping." When you'd walk into a store and the sales person would pull out a fine box from behind the glass, as if it were a piece of jewelry, and assist you while trying them on. It wasn't a luxurious thing, it was a thing. A thing that's missing in todays world. What a perfect finishing touch to any outfit. It's those tiny details that make a huge difference.

Wouldn't it be great to see gloves more often as a must have accessory? When you leave the house, when you leave the restaurant, when you leave a place put on your gloves. Keep your hands covered while driving so you don’t get skin cancer. Just wear your gloves when it’s cold out, wear your gloves when you're going to have coffee/tea, wear them to church or wear them to any special occasion. Remember to also wear a light-medium glove to go about your day. Keep your hands looking young and show off your individual style. Let everyone know you don’t follow fashion trends, you have style...and a style lasts forever.