Leather Gloves Just for Tying Neckties

Hello,

I’m Mr. Linen.

If you’ve ever caught a silk necktie on a hangnail or the edge of your fingernail while tying it, you know how frustrating it feels.

Today, I’d like to share what is probably the only way to solve that problem.

In short: wear ultra-thin leather gloves when tying your tie.

Polishing Your Nails Won’t Save You

Even among silk fabrics, silk necktie cloth is especially delicate.

Have you ever trimmed and filed your nails, only to still snag something when tying a tie?

Sometimes the culprit is indeed your nail, but often it’s the dry skin on your fingertips. That rough surface can easily catch the fine fibers of silk.

If there were such a thing as “finger pad polishing,” it might help—but as far as I know, it doesn’t exist.

Hand cream can help a little by reducing dryness, but it never achieves that perfectly smooth finish. And with silk threads being as fine as they are, snags remain almost inevitable.

Learning from Masakatsu Ochiai: Leather Gloves for Necktie Tying

When it comes to classic menswear, my self-appointed mentor is the late Masakatsu Ochiai. Somewhere in his writings, he mentioned using leather gloves specifically when tying a necktie.

According to him, “The closer gloves feel to bare skin, the better.” One way to judge is whether you can pick up coins or turn pages in a book while wearing them.

When I tried, I found that picking up coins and flipping pages was easy even with ordinary leather gloves. But tying a tie was another story.

To create a proper dimple in your tie knot, you need fingertip control—and even a few millimeters of leather thickness makes it harder.

My winter gloves had a wool lining inside the leather, which was great for warmth but too thick for fine movements.

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最高級を求める方は、手袋はデンツ一択かもしれませんが、私はCARIDEIというブランドを心からおススメします。

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I began to wonder: could unlined, ultra-thin leather gloves work?

You can find unlined gloves, but they’re usually designed for spring or autumn, when warmth is still the main goal.

Here’s the problem:

Lined gloves = made for deep winter

Unlined gloves = made for cool spring/autumn days

In other words, gloves are almost always made for warmth. Leather that is extremely thin—thin enough to lose any insulation value—is rare because such gloves have little practical demand.

For a while, I gave up searching seriously and kept tying my ties barehanded.

The Unexpected Solution: Women’s Leather Gloves

Then one day, I found them—the gloves of destiny.

These gloves are so thin that I suspect they’re as close as leather can get to paper without tearing.

In fact, two layers of this leather are still thinner than one layer of my winter gloves.

And yes—they’re women’s gloves.

I suspect that unlike men’s gloves, which prioritize warmth, some women’s gloves exist solely to make the hands look elegant, with little focus on insulation.

That’s probably the case here.

(Though of course, they’re still warmer than bare hands.)

Incidentally, I found them at a shop in Tokyo during an absurd “80% off” sale and got them for a steal.

They’re by Dents—the king of gloves—but not the ultra-expensive peccary leather ones that cost over ¥100,000. These are made from sheep leather, with a retail price under ¥20,000.

Checking Dents’ current website, I saw only one unlined women’s glove—a driving glove.

The men’s line does have unlined hair sheep gloves, but neither men’s nor women’s options look particularly ultra-thin in the photos.

They seem to prioritize function over beauty, with a certain amount of thickness.

As for the men’s gloves, judging from the photos of them worn with a coat, I think they provide a fair degree of warmth.

The women’s gloves, on the other hand, are driving gloves with perforations, so I don’t think warmth was the priority. But since they’re meant for gripping a steering wheel and being actively used without tearing, I imagine they use leather of a certain thickness for durability.

Incidentally, a notable feature of the women’s gloves is that the wrist section is longer than on the men’s pair.

Also, the circumference around the back of the hand is smaller than that of the men’s gloves, giving them a slimmer shape.

My hands are on the slender side, so while they fit snugly, they still went on fine.

Yes, the longer wrist section looks a bit feminine—but since I’m just using them for tying a tie, it’s no problem.

So Thin They Work on a Touchscreen

Here’s the ultimate proof of how thin they are: they work on a smartphone touchscreen.

This is not like typical “touchscreen gloves,” which have special conductive film at the fingertips.

These gloves have no such film—the leather itself is thin enough that the screen responds naturally.

To see what I mean, try placing a tissue over your phone screen and moving your finger—the screen will still respond. Try a sheet of copy paper—it will probably respond too.

Even a supermarket plastic bag works.

But a Lacoste polo shirt? No reaction.

That means these gloves are truly that thin.

Incidentally, Dents offers an unlined men’s glove that is touchscreen-compatible.

The fact that there are two unlined versions—one touchscreen-compatible and one not—means that the non-compatible one won’t register on a touchscreen.

If a touchscreen doesn’t respond, that means the leather isn’t ultra-thin.

Since the touchscreen-compatible version should actually be thicker than the non-compatible one, it suggests that neither of them is particularly thin.

Do They Actually Work for Tying a Tie?

I tested it.

Honestly, they don’t feel exactly like bare hands. You still feel the glove, and it’s a bit less nimble.

But I could still make a proper dimple.

The only drawback is that the stitched seams where the leather panels meet create slight bumps, adding just enough thickness to separate your fingers from the tie.

Seamless construction is likely impossible for a three-dimensional shape like a glove, so this is unavoidable.

By using the smooth part of your fingertip instead of the seam, you can tie without issues.

And as the gloves break in, I expect them to become even easier to use.

Where Can You Buy Them?

Unfortunately, the store where I bought mine only had one pair left. I couldn’t find the exact same model online.

Since there’s virtually no demand in Japan for “necktie-tying gloves,” most stores don’t import them. You might find some abroad.

If you’re willing to compromise on thickness, Dents has unlined men’s gloves for ¥27,500 (as of May 2025). They’re still pricey for a single-purpose glove, and I haven’t tried them myself, so I can’t vouch for how thin they are.

If style isn’t a priority, Amazon has real leather gloves for around ¥2,150.

At 0.5 mm thick, they’re probably not touchscreen-thin, but could be worth a try.

Could Rubber Gloves or Finger Cots Work?

Technically, you don’t need leather—any finger covering that prevents snagging could work.

Finger cots or rubber gloves might substitute,

but there’s a catch: many rubber products are coated with powder to prevent sticking, and that powder could transfer to your tie.

Also… tying a tie while wearing rubber gloves just doesn’t feel elegant.

Final Thoughts

I’d love to write a straightforward “Buy this!” recommendation—but since I can’t find a place to buy these gloves, this turned into more of a curiosity piece.

If you’re searching for ultra-thin leather gloves, consider using this as a benchmark: Will they work on a touchscreen?

Thank you for reading.