I started with Kwik Sew #2326, which is designed for stretchy fabrics. My fabric is an off-white suedecloth and has a negligible amount of stretch.So, I did a LOT of slashing and spreading. I also lengthened the fingers to match my actual fingers and allowed extra room at the glove top for my 'generous' biceps.

A lot of surviving gloves have embroidery. I have a love/hate relationship with my embroidery machine, but if there's ever a time to get over yourself and just do it that time is when you need embroidered gloves!


My first hurdle came right away - literally my first seam. I'd slashed and spread everything except the thumb! Finger-sized thumbs just aren't gonna cut it.

Back to the cutting room for some slashing and spreading. Oh, and more embroidery.

That's better!

From there it was a combination of tedious machine and hand sewing. Seam allowances for gloves is 1/8" and that takes extra concentration. I set the thumbs into the glove body by hand because that really is just easier, if more time consuming. I have a special foot that helps get a true 1/8" seam allowance (in theory) but it does require you to sew 'backwards' with the edge of the fabric along the left side of the presser foot.

Still, I did have some issues that will need to be corrected before an actual wearing.

I think they'll be good enough for an evening event in low lighting. One glove down, one to go!


I like that it has some on-board capabilites (mirroring, changing where in the hoop the embroidery will go, increasing or decreasing size by a small amount, and some monogram files loaded in on-board memory.) It does detect when there's a problem with the thread (breakage or bobbin has run out) but I've found it often doesn't detect this in a timely manner.
Which leads me into the things I don't like. After fixing a problem with the thread, moving forward/backward in the design to the point where the problem occurred is difficult. It's a serious issue in larger designs, as it only 'remembers' a certain number of stitches. The largest field it's capable of embroidering is 4"x4", which is inconvenient for me. I recommend buying a machine with as large an embroider-able field as you can. While many designs are offered in a variety of sizes, the larger versions tend to have more detail and 'wow' factor. Resizing designs is possible, but gets tricky at about 15% change. After that point you need to adjust stitch density in digitizing software, and finding something user-friendly is like finding a unicorn. I'd also prefer a larger and more detailed screen on my machine. I've also seen what's effectively a laser guidance system, so you know exactly where your design is centered (or where a corner is, etc.) That one feature could have saved me so many headaches!
I guess what it boils down to is buy the best machine you can afford. You won't regret having all the bells-and-whistles that comes with it.