Mike Redwood
Gloves
16th April 2025
“We are at a crossroads in history”
For the centuries that Glovermakers have been making gloves in the United Kingdom they have made it their duty to service the Crown, the Judiciary, the Armed Forces and the State in its widest definition. So when our Prime Minister tells the country that because of the significance of the moment he will be “Increasing […]
15th February 2023
The Worshipful Company of Glovers of London
We tend to overlook the Livery Companies that represented all the crafts, as in the main they were much poorer and struggled to survive. Glovers were typical founded in the 14th century by the late 15th they were merging and then being taken over by the Leathersellers, a rich trading compsny. Capital versus labour writ […]
6th February 2022
Times change
For those who watch this website and in particular the blog you may have noticed that below the waterline quite a lot has been happening. I have been steadily trying starting to update some parts of the website and to improve the ease of reading. A new timeline for gloves has been introduced and will […]
9th January 2022
A new book on Gloves is a major contribution to the understanding of the mystery of gloves
An academic career teaching French and writing about French literature is an unusual background from which to segue into the literature of gloves. Anne Green, Emeritus Professor of French at King’s College London, shows the value of such a move in her enthralling new book Gloves, An Intimate History. Talking to the glove network she came […]
16th October 2020
A Confusion of Names
Anyone with a training in leathermaking soon becomes confused when faced by the various names given to the leather in historic gloves. This is not so much a matter of error but rather a question of how difficult it is to identify species in glove leather when a great variety of origins and processing methods […]
1st May 2020
Getting through the Plague
Getting through the plague: a rather rambling story of how the Worshipful Company of Glovers of London were given their 1638 Charter by Charles I, King of Great Britain and Ireland (1625-1649) True to the times it is said that the Black Death, or at least the most significant outbreak of it, originated in China […]
2nd April 2020
Personal thoughts on the history of the Glovers Company of London
This is the approximate content of a talk to the Worshipful Company of Glovers of London in February 2019 Master, Wardens, Baroness, Visiting Masters, Worthy and Learned Clerk, Guests, Citizens and Glovers. It is amazing to think that in the City of London, a place that has been so dominated by men over the last […]
22nd March 2020
The Leather in 16th and 17th century Gloves
Looking at the records written about the magnificent gloves of the 16th and 17th century that we find in museums throughout the world we often marvel at the gauntlet style with the large cuff displaying fabulous embroidery, gilt threads, jewels and all manner of fringes and tassels. Anyone with half an interest in dress, fashion, craftsmanship or materials […]
21st February 2019
Great article on gloves from Naples, and France
The glove world has been busy lately. A friend and colleague whom I meet regularly in Asia, although she currently lives in Switzerland, has written a fine short article on the glove industry in Naples. Find it here Neapolitan Hands Also Rosemary Harden from the Fashion Museum in Bath took a four day Glove related […]
4th September 2018
Glovers Company 2019 Design Competition
Student Competitions THE 2019 COMPETITIONS Details Written by John Spanner Last Updated: 29 August 2018 2019 There are 2 competitions for students – Glove design and Safety Poster design; the closing date for both competitions is Friday 22 March 2019 GLOVE DESIGN COMPETITION There are two categories, each of which has a first prize of […]