What Fabric Are Gloves Made Of? (Oven, Waterproof, Cosplay)
Different duties demand different fabrics. No matter what you are doing, there is a material that is best suited for that duty. Finding the right material for your task just takes a little research. Then all you need to do is find that fabric at an affordable price.
What fabric are gloves made of? You name a piece of fabric and it is highly likely that some sort of glove has been made from that material. From lambskin to cow skin to latex, gloves have been made from a myriad of fabrics. Gloves can even be crocheted if you want to talk about mittens.
To learn more about the fabrics used to make gloves, just continue to read our article. It is filled with the results of extensive research making sure you get the right information. Just take a few minutes to catch up on glove materials.
Fabric for Gloves 101
Best Fabric for Winter Gloves
Wool would be anyone’s first thought when answering this question. And wool is a good winter material as it helps shield your fingers from the cold as well as the wind. But there are other materials that would work just as well or better than wool.
First up, you would want to try leather. This thick fabric is great at insulating your hands and fingers as well as being tough enough to handle snow or ice. Next would be a man-made Thinsulate material. It is great at keeping the cold off your hands and can look good but not as good as leather can.
If you do not want to spend the money then try looking for those nylon fabric made gloves. They are waterproof and help keep melting snow from icing up your fingers. Polyester is also good as it doe snot breathe that well and that will tap your body heat inside your gloves.
What is the Warmest Fabric for Gloves?
They say that wool is the warmest fabric known to mankind. That remains to be seen and it may be true if all you are comparing are fabrics made from natural fibers. If you add a layer of Thinsulate or fleece as a liner to wool, then you may have the warmest fabric possible for when winter strikes.
Close runners up would be fleece and microfibers. Both of these materials are made from polyester and recycled plastics so you get a tough material that is not afraid to stand up to the cold.
Some may argue that nylon or similar fabrics used for ski gloves are the warmest fabrics that can be used for gloves. It is a matter of opinion as when one is skiing they are generating a lot of body heat that may influence the warmth scale. Cashmere is said to be warm as is leather so you have a fine choice of material to work with.
What is the Toughest Leather for Gloves?
This may also be a matter of opinion as one group states that goatskin is the toughest leather for gloves. That is because that material has lanolin in it which makes it soft yet waterproof and resistant to cuts and scratches.
Others will say cow skin because cow skin leather is very tough and used the most often in lots of clothing besides gloves. It may also be the more affordable material to go with.
Other choices for tough leather are pigskin and deerskin. Both are excellent fabrics to use for making gloves and they can be gentle on your hand while enduring a lot of rough work.
The best leather for gloves will be the one that you like best, that breaks in rather well and quickly as well as look good as you work. Most leathers are just tough no matter where the material comes from.
Best Fabric for Cosplay Gloves
There are lots of fabrics in the running for the title of the best fabric for cosplay gloves. One choice is neoprene because it is soft, stretchy, and spongy as well as opaque. Its 3 to 4 mm thickness makes it durable as well.
Next, you have stretchy scuba that is a heavyweight material making it very strong and durable. It is also soft to the touch making it ideal for some people. After that, you should consider Slinky Matt Lycra as, like scuba, it slides over your fingers with ease and hugs your form. Plus, it is breathable.
Then there is crushed velour. This fabric is luxurious, stretchy, and soft. Its shimmering look makes your hands stand out and be noticed. The material’s ripple effect adds an interesting level of glamour to your hands. Finally, G-Mesh stands out as it is very breathable and should keep your hands from sweating.
Touch Screen Conductive Fabric for Gloves
Technology influences a lot of life’s activities. Now with the upgrades to touch screens technology is influencing the types of fabrics you use for certain gloves. The good thing is, you do not need to make the glove completely out of this fabric. Just a fingertip or two will suffice.
The fabric is called Silver Fiber Conductive Fabric and when placed on the right fingertip, your touch screen duties should not be interfered with. The key when using this fabric on your fingertips only is not to make those pads too small.
You also do not want them too large as you may hit more than one button and mess up your work. Think Goldilocks here and make the fabric tips just right. You might want to look at some motorcycle fabrics as there are some being used for motorcycles gloves right now.
Those gloves get the fabric placed on their thumbs and forefingers.
Fabric Suitable for Oven Gloves
Heat is always going to be an issue when you love to cook. The best way to enjoy cooking is by protecting your hands with the right materials. Usually, cotton is the go-to fabric when making cooking mitts or oven gloves.
The fabric is light, decorative, and has insulated lining to make sure the heat is directed away from your hands. Sometimes silicone is used to coat the gloves to protect your fingers from hot water or grease spills.
Then Kevlar and Nomex synthetic fabrics are often used as a substitute for cotton. These tough materials keep the heat away very well. The Kevlar and Nomex materials used in firemen’s clothing are the same materials used in many oven gloves. That means you are getting the ultimate protection possible.
Cotton Fabric for Gloves
If you like to exercise your ability of freedom to choose, then cotton fabrics for gloves will provide you with lots of opportunities to use that freedom. That is just for the 100% cotton options. There are plenty of cotton blends you can choose from as well.
The cotton you use will depend on the purpose of those gloves. Garden gloves just need to be durable and breathable with a little softness thrown in. For boxing, you have up to 68 choices in some locations.
The best thing to do is to pick the best cotton fabric that is designed for the job you have to do. There are just too many choices to recommend just one or two here. Cotton is also very affordable in most cases and that is one reason it is used most often.
Warmest Fabric for Gloves
Let’s start with the most affordable material first. Cotton is a good fabric to use that helps your hands stay nice and warm. That is if you select some of the thicker versions of this fabric. The thin options are not recommended for warmth or winter.
Then you should try wool as it is probably the warmest natural fiber you can find. Not to be outdone, cashmere is a good choice as it is also made from wool and should have those wool air pockets that add insulation for your hands.
Leather and faux leather are also war,. Their thick style makes sure the wind and cold do not penetrate and cool down your fingers. Also, fur and faux fur are excellent choices as fur has kept animals warm ever since animals were created.
Finally, you can use fleece to keep your fingers and hands warm. It too has those air pockets like the wool has.
How to Sew Fabric Gloves
Step one: trace your hand n a piece of paper. This helps you get the right fit and then use a fabric pen to trace around the cut-out pattern onto the fabric. You can also extend the length of the glove at your wrist to meet your needs.
Step two: do step one for both hands and for both sides of the gloves. Then using a straight stitch sew the edges of the two sides together. Do not sew across the opening of the gloves.
Step three: Once that is done you can cut off any excess material and then hem the opening to your taste.
Step four: repeat for the second pair of gloves. As you can see, the process is not that difficult and it should not take that long to make a pair of gloves. Plus, you can use any material you want to make your pair of gloves as well as add on any embellishments you think will help their look.
Fabric Gloves Pattern
The easiest pattern you can use and one that will not cost you any money is to use your own hands or the hands of the family member who will wear those creations. All you have to do is find a clean white sheet of paper and trace those hands.
Even for gloves that have the fingers cut out, this is still the best way to get a pattern. This method only needs you to trim off that finger section you are discarding. It is not hard to make gloves or a pattern for them.
Of course, if you want to use a pattern, there are plenty of websites offering free patterns for you to use. Here is one location that has more than just free glove patterns. They have a large selection of other clothing items as well.
Fabric Fingerless Gloves Pattern
As we have already said, you can use your own hands as your pattern even for this style of glove. The reason you use your hands or the hands of the person who is going to wear them is that you get the best fit possible.
Also, you won’t lose that pattern, you are stuck with it for life. But if you need a pattern, here is one internet company that has about 20 of them for free. This location offers you 10 crochet fingerless patterns for those people who like to crochet.
For either style of gloves, there is no shortage of patterns that are available.
How to Waterproof Fabric Gloves
The first step would be to make your own using waterproof fabric. This is the easiest way to get the results you want. There are plenty of waterproof materials to choose from so you won’t lose out on style or looks.
The next easiest method is to buy a waterproofing spray. These just spray on and if you follow the instructions you can have good results without any trouble. A good waterproofing wax compound will also do the trick. Just make sure to follow the instructions to do a good job.
Some of those products will be called footwear or o=some other name but they work on gloves as well.
Some Final Words
Gloves are an easy sewing project to do. You can keep yourself and your family fully supplied with gloves of any type as there are lots of fabrics to work with. The good thing is making your own gloves will not take up a lot of your free time. That makes this a good project to do.
