I love wearing handknit gloves. They’re perfect for driving, for cool fall days, and for wearing underneath knit mittens in the cold of winter. The extra layer of my gloves keeps my hands happy and comfy; then I can toss my wet mittens, snowy from clearing off the windshield, onto the seat beside me while I leave my gloves on to drive.

This is a basic pattern that I use to teach students how to knit gloves. I’ve written it with graded sizes, tips for customizing, and lots of illustrations to show you when and how to pick up stitches. Make sure you read the Appendix so you don’t miss any tricks!

Yarn
Any fingering-weight sock yarn is perfect. You won’t need a whole 100g skein. Just over half a skein makes a pair, and I can usually squeeze a second pair from it if it’s smaller or has a contrasting cuff. I do recommend using a yarn with nylon in it (or something else added for strength, like silk), since the 100% wool gloves I made myself last year busted a hole in two fingers before the season ended. It also depends on the wool fibre and the way it’s been spun, so I wouldn’t write off using a wool if it’s hardy, has a long staple, and is worsted spun.

Needles
I use my favourite sock needles and my favourite sock gauge: a dense, 8.5 st per inch gauge to get firm yet comfy fabric.
It doesn’t matter whether you use Magic Loop or dpns; the instructions aren’t needle specific.

What makes these gloves different?
Well, I haven’t read every glove pattern out there, so I’ll just tell you what I know. I’ve knit a few glove patterns over the years, and this pattern contains all my favourite tricks for nice fitting, logical gloves.

These features include:
~ off-set thumb gussets for ergonomical fit
~ no unnecessary cutting of yarn in weird places (but there will be lots of tails; let’s be honest. It has fingers).
~ a way to pick up stitches to eliminate holes at the finger corners
~ a quick-glance chart for stitch counts for you to use once you’ve mastered the construction. That way, if you’re knitting your tenth pair a few years from now and you just need to know how many stitches to set aside per finger, you can use the sizing table without having to hunt through the pattern again
~ illustrations that show you how to work your way around each finger
~ a lower division for the pinky finger for a comfortable fit

The bottom line is that gloves are gloves. I’ve tried to include all the little things that help me make them My perfect pair. I hope you end up loving knitting them as much as I do!