Driving Gloves for the Lady of the Manor by Vicki Square

Driving Gloves for the Lady of the Manor

Knitting
September 2014
Sport (12 wpi) ?
36 stitches and 35 rows = 4 inches
in Twisted Rib
US 5 - 3.75 mm
US 4 - 3.5 mm
US 1 - 2.25 mm
862 yards (788 m)
6¼ inches (15.9 cm) palm circumference, stretches for a snug fit; gauntlet length, about 7¼ inches (18 cm) from wrist
English

Interweave SKU: EP11492

Finished Size: 6¼ inches (15.9 cm) palm circumference, stretches for a snug fit; gauntlet length, about 7¼ inches (18 cm) from wrist

Yarn: Brown Sheep Company Nature Spun, 100% wool, sportweight, 184 yards (168.2 m)/50 gram (1.8 oz) skein, 3 skeins of #200 Bordeaux and Brown Sheep Company Nature Spun, 100% wool, fingering weight, 310 yards (283.5 m)/50 gram (1.8 oz) skein

Needles: Sets of double pointed, sizes 5 (3.75 mm), 4 (3.5 mm), 3 (3.25 mm), and 1 (2.25 mm) or size needed to obtain gauge

Notions: Markers; removable markers; small amount of smooth contrast color yarn to use for holding; cable needle; medium-fine tapestry needle; buttons, ½ inch (1.3 cm), 6

Gauge: 36 sts and 35 rnds = 4 inches (10.2 cm) in Twisted Rib with sportweight yarn on size 3 (3.25 mm) needle, barely stretched; 36 sts and 50 rnds = 4 inches (10.2 cm) in St st with fingering-weight yarn on size 1 (2.25 mm) needle

Originally Published: Unofficial Downton Abbey Knits 2014

Lady Edith was the first woman of Downton Abbey’s Crawley family to learn to drive. She led the way with her enthusiasm, and it was a natural extension of her purposeful direction to offer her skills and talents in the war effort during World War I (1914–1918). As driving became an enjoyable sporting pastime, following the end of the war, fashionable gauntlets became de rigueur for keeping the wind at bay while breezing through the British countryside in an open air two-seater.

A reflection of the time, yet still fashionable today, these gloves begin in sportweight yarn with a long cuff and an inverted pleat on the inner arm tapering to a snug wrist. Ribbing with twisted knit stitches keeps the gauntlet firm and merges into cables at the wrist. The hand, in fingering yarn, is smooth stockinette with tapered fingers and thumbs. Three “tuck” lines adorn the back of the hand. Small buttons close the pleat to keep out the cold, or unbutton them to exaggerate the flare of the cuff.