It has definitely been hat and glove weather here in the Shenandoah Valley recently. I’ve been wearing my favorite pair of gloves, a bright multi-colored pair that fit me exactly right.
Update note: This knit along took place a while back, but you can still knit along in your own time, with the benefit of being able to see the entire process without having to wait for the next post.
The Glove Challenge
For years, I struggled with gloves that didn’t fit my wide hand/short fingers at all. I especially had trouble with the placement of the pinkie finger; I always had a lot of empty space in the top of that glove finger, yet, the bottom of the finger didn’t sit comfortably in the crotch between my ring and pinkie. I’ve knitted and crocheted gloves for myself, and even designed a few (like these Socrates Gloves). Still, I was never quite satisfied with my results.
Each of my fingers is a different size, and even—dare I say it—a different shape. And by the time I do a gauge swatch in a particular yarn, I could have probably knit an entire glove.
The Perfect Glove for Me
I thought it would be great if I could design a glove that has all the following characteristics:
- Fits each one of my fingers perfectly
- Has exactly the (negative) ease I prefer in a glove, without being so tight it cuts off my circulation
- Can be adapted to whatever yarn I have on hand
- Doesn’t require knitting a gauge swatch.
So that’s just what I did!
No-Gauge Custom-Fit Gloves
Here’s why this pattern is one of my faves:
- Use your choice of yarn weight (fingering, sport, dk or worsted),
- Use your favorite method of working in the round (double-pointed needles, two circulars, or magic loop)
- Skip the gauge swatch—just pick appropriate yarn and needles
- The gloves are worked fingers-first, allowing you to custom-fit them as you knit.
- In-progress photos help you with the techniques. Even if you’ve never knit gloves before, you can knit these
- Once you get the hang of it, you’ll be adding embellishments and stitch patterns to further make them your own. Best of all, they will really fit!
The Knit Along
I wrote the pattern a few years ago, and I’ve been wanting to re-format it and provide better pictures. It occurred to me that I need to knit another pair of gloves to get those photos, so why not invite my knitting friends to join me in a Knit Along?
I’ll work just a little bit ahead of you, providing photos answer questions along the way, and when we are finished, you’ll get the newly reformatted pattern AND you’ll have a pair of perfectly-fitting gloves.
Start by downloading the pattern and choosing your yarn. Yarn amounts are given in the pattern instructions.
Get your yarn and needles ready for our next steps! Or just get started on your own and come with questions.
Continue to Part 2 of the knitalong.
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