Hi, Greenhaven! I wrote on my original thread, "the gloves sized ranking are for thinner smaller-boned fingers I feel. Being very petite, the gloves were exactly the perfect fit, but I can see how many might need to order a size up.."

Maybe, Greenhaven, I should have described more clearly what petite meant. Admitting that I'm 5'2-1/2" 97 lbs. might have given people a more direct warning/idea about aize restrictions. So sorry!

But the good thing Greenhaven, is that there may be some loosening. I rechecked my gloves and there is definitely "give" to it. I think mine have actually loosened by 1/2 a size, but my big concern is that it won't loosen to the full extent that many people may require. The best thing is to first flex your hand, and if there is no constriction, then you are safe. There is a difference between snug and constricted. If you are borderline, call and ask Bear Wallow for help and advice. They seem to be such a wonderful company and I'm sure they'll let you know which is the best way to go!

I will go back to my thread and say order a size up! instead.

Thanks, serena. As soon as I slipped those puppies on I seemed to recall you saying something about ordering larger because they run small. I guess my mistake was assuming the company would provide accurate-enough guidelines. They seem to be an excellent company, though, and I have no doubts that they will help me figure it out!

I think I fall into the 'restricted' category rather than 'snug' so they probably won't stretch enough to be comfortable. When I make a fist inside the gloves my knuckles hurt, lol! But I do remember the last pair of goatskin gloves I got, which stretched out a LOT, particularly after they had gotten wet. That's why I wanted to ask before zooming off to the company. I am 5' 7" and around 175 (right now, but shrinking!) but am very muscular and "garden" for a living so my hands and wrists are very muscular. not very feminine, indeed, but it is what it is I suppose.

Mine are snug too :) Not constricting but definitely very snug. Nice gloves though. I do have to admit, unless I'm going to be doing a bunch of pruning, I don't usually wear anything on my hands. I find it easier to work without any gloves. But, there are times....

How much did yours stretch, kentstar?

Hi Greenhaven,
This is Wes from Bear Wallow. Using the information on the website will give you a snug fit for the gloves. Serena is right when she says they will stretch. What you're looking for is to make sure that they seat between the fingers without putting pressure on the fingertips (they can be touching but you don't want pressure there when you make a fist) and it's just snug across the palm when making a fist. If they meet all those requirements, they'll stretch to where they "fit like a glove". If you feel they're too tight, just contact us via the contact page on the website and we'll be happy to exchange them. Some people want a very snug fit while a snug fit makes others uncomfortable. We just want you to be happy with your gloves and are willing to work with you until you are.
Wes

Ah HA! I knew it! Thanks, gloveman. I will go try them on again right now. :o)

I figured out what the problem is: when I put the gloves back on I could not even get my fingers to the end of the glove fingers because the gloves are so tight across my hand below the base of my thumb. It's actually painful on my lower thumb joint, especially after two days of weeding.

So, given that, should I order another whole size larger? A sensitive touch is not so big a deal to me with these particular gloves, so maybe a snug fit will not be as important. These are definitely going to be for my heavy duty work.

Hi Greenhaven,
It sounds like you would need to move up a whole size but if you'd like to give me a call on our 800 number, it's easier to figure out when talking directly to each other.
Thanks, Wes

Will do! Might not be until next week, I am going out of town and have a gajillion things to do before hand. Thank you for your kind attention!

Greenhaven, I'm so glad that Wes is helping out! What a wonderful company! Next month, I'm actually thinking of ordering another pair of Bear Wallow gloves too, lol! This time a short pair of gloves just to pluck out the BS leaves and the BS'd foliage that is contaminating the floor of my rosebed. I have a phobia of spreading BS to the rest of my clean roses, so I want to keep the 2 types of gloves separate for different usage- the one pair of short gloves for all the BS cleanup, the long gauntlet gloves for everything else! BS and our unending floods/rains are making me as fussy and as weird as the obsessive-compulsive Tony Shalhoub from the TV series Monk, hahahaha!

Anyway I just love, love my Bear Wallow gloves! They are AMAZING! Geenhaven hope that you get to soon enjoy your future refitted gloves also!