Losing that glove-ing feeling

June 15, 2024 4:54 AM

Anyone out there who also hates the feel of wearing gloves? If so, have you found work gloves or cleaning gloves that are bearable for daily use?

Gloves in general feel suffocating, heavy, constricting and bulky to me (dish gloves with bonus interior sweatiness, yay), and I find that I take them off mid-task and lose them without even noticing it. But after a heavy yard/housework month I'm also pretty tired of my hands being covered in tiny cuts exacerbated by repeated soaking in dirt, water and cleansers.

I can't be the only person in the world with this oddly specific sensory issue. Mefites, if this is also you, have you solved this problem? Any specific non-glovey glove recommendations?

posted by Bardolph to Home & Garden (17 answers total)

fingerless gloves are a nice option sometimes
posted by HearHere at 6:00 AM on June 15

I have found sport specific gloves to be more comfortable than generic work gloves. Golf, racquetball, squash, probably doesn't matter what, as long as it's made of soft leather like goat or cabretta. they will be thinner than a work glove but possibly more comfy. sometimes the backs will be fabric and therefore more breathable/flexible/feel less suffocating.
posted by mrgoldenbrown at 6:14 AM on June 15 [1 favorite]

Search for "convertible fingerless gloves." I don't remember now where I bought mine, but I have a set of fingerless gloves made from a comfortable, sweat-wicking material that include a "mitten" cover you can pull back and attach to velcro when you need to keep your fingers free. The thumb of each glove is fully covered, but many pairs have a "hole" in the thumb so you can easily poke it out when you need your thumbs free. These are the only gloves I wear in the winter and they make life so much easier. Not the best choice if you're going to be digging your hands directly into the snow but other than that they're very convenient.
posted by nightrecordings at 6:21 AM on June 15 [1 favorite]

Seconding the soft leather glove.

When I farmed, we only used gloves for super-prickly tasks or blister-causing tasks. For the usual work, we'd start the day by putting a lanolin-based cream on our hands, like Bag Balm. That prevented most of the tiny cuts.

I wonder, too, if changing your cleaning regime might help. For dishes, I let them all soak for 15 minutes, and then the actual "washing" bit of it takes very little time, and less exposure to water and solvents.

I also use the mildest cleaners possible, and that is the number one thing that's made a difference to my skin - there are a number of options for mild hand-washing dish soaps, and very effective cleaners can be made from Dawn dish soap, oil-based soaps like Murphy's, white vinegar, and lemon juice. And then use a good hand moisturizer immediately after.
posted by Silvery Fish at 6:26 AM on June 15 [1 favorite]

I hate gloves too and almost always choose the skin damage and/or cold over wearing them. For cleaning with harsh enough chemicals it matters, I find thin snug nitrile healthcare-style gloves somewhat more tolerable than the ones sold for dishes, and agree that sports gloves are much better than gardening/tool gloves. If I must, I favor biking or running ones, and don't mind synthetic fabrics vs leather: for me it's all about the fingers fitting correctly. Or, a couple years back I also found out about military surplus wool gloves on eBay, and those I find tolerable enough to sleep in (for cold-weather camping) after having cut the index fingers and thumbs so the tips fold back.
posted by teremala at 6:29 AM on June 15

I know this is going to sound ridiculous and it may not work for you but have you considered wearing MORE GLOVES? I sometimes find it more comfortable to wear a thin cotton glove (washable or even disposable) underneath harder/sweatier gloves.

They up the bulkiness factor but they lower the "ew, the insides of gloves are gross" factor for me. I don't have as strong of an aversion to gloves as you do, though.
posted by mskyle at 6:51 AM on June 15 [1 favorite]

Yep, I came to sing the praises of white cotton gloves. I work with epoxy resin and I just cannot deal with sweating into nitrile gloves, so I have a stack of cotton gloves I put on underneath, and am now very good at getting the nitrile off right-side-out, changing my cotton glove for a dry one, and getting the nitrile back on. I also try to keep "glove tasks" to one hand so I only wear a glove on that one.

I also do my best to clean in ways that don't involve touching, but one thing I can do with much less misery is use a silicone mini oven mitt to hold a detergenty/wet rag or wet dishes while you clean with a brush. But you know what else you can use for cleaning tasks? Kitchen tongs! Tongs, or a reacher-grabber, which I would use (sometimes one in each hand) for yardwork when I had a yard, and is also clutch for cleaning baseboards. You can also clean a lot of stuff with various configurations of rags and the regular plain swiffer-type mop and dust wand, with some clothespins or rubber bands if needed to hold stuff on.
posted by Lyn Never at 7:06 AM on June 15 [3 favorites]

I have this dilemma, especially with carrying, opening and breaking down cardboard boxes which just destroys the skin on my fingers. So, fingerless gloves or convertibles not an option. (Those are my favorite for general outdoor wear.)

What I do is go to a gardening supply store and buy lightweight, fairly stretchy and breathable gardening gloves with a little bit of latex on the palms and fingertips. (Workpro is one brand.) When I did more receiving work I kept bales of them around. Also, if the task allows it, I wear a glove only on one hand-- the one that's holding the cardboard or whatever, while the one wielding the box cutter doesn't really need one.
posted by BibiRose at 7:15 AM on June 15 [1 favorite]

I am also a glove-hater but find they are necessary for certain tasks. These Showa Atlas gloves strike a good balance of protection, flexibility, and breath-ability for yard work. They have a layer of nitrile over the palms and fingers, but the back is a fabric that wicks away moisture. They are relatively inexpensive compared to most work gloves and come in different sizes, so you can grab whichever is most comfortable.
posted by arcolz at 7:16 AM on June 15

I can't even tell you how much I love these gloves. I use them for dishes and light housework, anytime I am using cleansers or my hands are in water. It is early in the morning and I haven't yet finished my coffee, so my powers of description are weak. But let me just say that they are very comfortable, like very smooth, dry touch, and loose but at the same time secure feeling. And I see from the ad photos that they are suggesting you can garden with them.
posted by nanook at 7:41 AM on June 15 [1 favorite]

My favourite is a Polish brand (Ravi) but the key is that despite being dishwashing gloves they're lined with something that feels like flannel. Completely different sensory impression than rubber or latex. I've run across this fuzzy inside coating in heavy duty cleaning gloves too.
posted by I claim sanctuary at 8:53 AM on June 15

For cleaning tasks that require a barrier to chemicals, unfortunately I can't offer any good suggestions. I use nitrile for shop related tasks frequently and just deal with the discomfort and resulting "hand soup" (I am a very sweaty person).

However, for general tasks and hand protection, I am a huge fan of the woven and coated style of glove! Ansell is a major manufacturer. I buy through industrial suppliers (McMaster Carr) because I don't go through them very fast, and it gave me the option of trying lots of different styles and sizes at about $5 a pair.

They come in tons of styles, including very lightweight with only partial coating, so they breathe well. One other thing to note is that they will break in over time and become more comfortable and form fitting. Washing your hands with the gloves on can accelerate this process.

https://www.mcmaster.com/8284T3 this is the sort of glove I am talking about.
posted by jellywerker at 9:01 AM on June 15 [1 favorite]

Go to the store, and try on garden gloves. There's so many different types, padded, lined, thick, thin. I thought I hated gloves, too. I found that thin leather garden gloves in my size work best. Sizing is important, I previously been borrowing "one size" which are too big and bulky for me. I recommend trying "women's" and "men's", choose the fit that works the best for you.

From what I can tell, women's fit is designed to fit slimmer, smaller hands. Unsure what makes them women's aside from the purple, but they fit better for me.

I'm currently using these Miracle-Gro brand gloves. They have a leather palm and a durable stretchy fabric back of hand. Amazon Link
posted by Guess What at 10:11 AM on June 15 [1 favorite]

For cleaning the kitchen and bathrooms, I like Bluettes. They're thick, heavier than dishwashing gloves, and they're lined with a fabric-like material that is durable, not like that flock-lined crap that comes apart on the first use. They're probably not dextrous enough for dishwashing. They fit well, but don't feel skin-tight like typical latex or nitrile dishwashing gloves often do, at least for me. The cuffs are long enough that I can roll them over to prevent drips running down my arms when cleaning overhead.

For yard work and general chores around the house, I like these Showa Atlas 370 nitrile gloves. They have good grip, offer enough protection that my fingers don't get chewed up while weeding or cutting brush, and they are dextrous enough that I can pick up nails and screws while building or repairing something.
posted by xedrik at 10:14 AM on June 15

My favorite landscaping/work gloves are leather gloves from Wells Lamont.

All the other landscaping gloves I've tried (including Showa and Wonder Grip gloves) are thin and delicate nitrile or dipped-rubber, and while more "tactile" they just don't stop blackberry and rose thorns and other sharp objects from cutting or poking through.

Also, sweat accumulates in the non-leather gloves, while the leather gloves ventilate more easily.

I wouldn't use any leather, nitrile, or rubber landscaping gloves for washing dishes.
posted by They sucked his brains out! at 1:23 PM on June 15

For gardening I love the HANDLANDY Long Thorn Proof Gardening Gloves, made of breathable pigskin they protect the arms up to the elbows. They are not so tight that they restrict movement and are tough but lightweight. I can break up limbs and tackle thorny vines without injury. I can also wipe my sweaty brow the the moisture wicking arm gauntlets. My first pair lasted through 2 years of tough stick and bamboo fighting and thorny vine removal.
posted by a humble nudibranch at 2:06 PM on June 15 [1 favorite]

I absolutely love this brand for gardening and DIY. They're stretchy fabric not rubber, so breathable but not waterproof. The rubber on the palms and fingers protects me from spiky things, improves my grip, and makes me feel stronger and more capable. They keep my hands clean so messy jobs don't trigger my hygiene complex. The stretchy fabric hugs your fingers so don't make you clumsy the way heavy-duty leather gardening gloves do. They're cheap enough that I don't feel bad about buying several pairs and replacing them every month or two. You can wash them with your laundry, which makes them last longer.
posted by snarfois at 8:55 AM on June 17