Guest Author - Teresa Greene

Dating back to the days of Catherine de Medici, the opera glove has always been a symbol of wealth, luxury, and elegance. Gloves had been an important element in menswear dating back to the 16th century. In the early 19th century, Napoleon’s Josephine decided she was tired of competing with men for the title of best dressed, and so adopted the glove as part of her own wardrobe, extending their length in a fitted fashion up over the elbow. The fashion quickly gained popularity and remained a necessity for the aristocratic woman well into the 20th century.

For authentic period costume wear, there are a couple of things that should be kept in mind. First, real opera gloves from various historical periods were anywhere from 19 to 23 inches long, most often made from kid leather in either white or ivory, but also dyed to a variety of colors. They were more infrequently made of cloth, but leather was by far a more desirable, as well as more costly, material. Second, authentic opera gloves have a closure mechanism at the wrist to facilitate removal of the hand portion of the glove without having to remove the entire glove, as high etiquette forbid this display in public. The opening at the wrist is referred to as a mousquetaire, after the name given to the gloves themselves in the earlier centuries, reflecting their use by the French Muskateers.

The mousquetaire is an opening of about 3 inches at the wrist, usually secured with buttons, or snaps. It is used when a woman needs to use her hand ungloved, but does not want to remove the entire glove. It would indeed look very unfashionable to have one long glove on and one long glove off! The proper practice is to roll the hand part of the glove up and tuck it into the upper part of the glove at the wrist opening, where it will stay until the glove can be put back on the hand. This is handy for weddings (so the ring can be placed on the bride’s finger), for formal dinners (it is considered improper to use utensils with a gloved hand), when wearing a gown with a train (to facilitate carrying the train by its carriage cord), or for any other occasion where you may need to use your hand ungloved.

Another popular form of the opera glove is the fingerless glove, which is either trimmed at the knuckles or laid over the hand in a point, and often has a loop that is worn around the index finger or the thumb to keep the glove in place over the wrist. This style of glove is popular for weddings, Ren-faire costumes, and teen prom occasions.

While opera gloves have not been frequently seen as part of high fashion in recent years, they are still a symbol of elegance and style, and can be worn without fear of fashion faux pas for many occasions. They are also an accessory that should not be forgotten when costuming an event that aims for historical accuracy, as these gloves were a necessity for several centuries, and any formal costume from the 16th century forward may look incomplete without them.