Like so many other expressions of couture, glove making was a craft that reached its pinnacle in France. The Huguenots were particularly accomplished glove makers. During the 17th Century, many settled in England, Germany, Denmark and Sweden. Wherever they went, they took their skills with them. Even to this day, the finest gloves are made in accordance with the French traditions.
Glove cutting is a rare skill. Today, there are fewer than a hundred practising glove cutters in the world. Only two can be found in Sweden – Anton and Niklas Magnusson, fourth-generation members of the family business.
Before the finished leather reaches us in Småland, it is transformed by expert tanners from raw hide to soft and supple full-grain leather. We use drum dyed leather as it retains the natural appearance and characteristics of the leather.
With only a glance our skilled glove cutters can determine how many gloves can be made from a single piece of leather. As a preparation, the skins are moistened and powdered to make it easier to work with. Thereafter, the glove cutter carefully examines the skins in order to determine and plan which parts of the leather to use for each section of the glove.
The glove cutter must use the leather as efficiently as possible and minimize the amount of waste while considering the individual properties of each skin. Because all leather has a natural stretch, the glove cutter must also stretch the leather before cutting and determine how much stretch should be left in the glove, where, and in what direction in order to guarantee a perfect- fitting glove.
The glove cutter’s tools are simple, yet proven. They use shears, a blunt knife called a piquette, and a ruler calibrated in French inches. With the help of stencils, the glove material is marked with lines. Even the glove’s forchettes – the sections on the side of the fingers – are stretched and cut.
The cutter’s knowledge and feel for the grain and texture of the leather determine the fit of the glove. The craft can only be learned through painstaking practice under the watchful eye of a master cutter.
Once the leather has been cut, the pieces that make up a glove are sewn together by either hand or machine, and the lining inserted. The gloves are then dressed on iron plates before ironed and polished to give them their final shape and finish.
