Is nitrile the blue kind of latex gloves? I use then when I work in the mud. Sometimes when I go into the hives and know that I don't want the propolis on my fingers, I will put them on, for that purpose only.
I go barehanded always. I find that the gloves are clumbsy, you can easily injure a bee and that is what causes the alarm pheromone and then the bees get angry right off. Bare hands you can even feel if you are close to one.
I use baby powder on my hands every time I work the hives. I have not had any stings on my hands from working in the hives. I have not tried without the baby powder, so I don't know.
I love my two piece bee suit. When the weather is not too hot that is what I wear. It has the attached hood that can be zipped off. It is pretty good, but I look like an alien.
When the weather gets warmer, I have the safari hat type with the veil that goes over it like in Sean's avitar, his veil that his child is wearing. That is awesome and I find it has great ventilation. I can put it on and go out in the apiary with bare arms. I like to wear halter tops in the summer to keep my body tanned and cooled off. I always wear my jeans, no matter what the temperature when I am in the apiary. Never shorts. I could not imagine what it would be like to have a bee sneak up the shorts, eeh gads!!!!! The only way that shorts might be OK is if a string was tied around the bottom of them to keep the material without gaps the bees could climb up. There are so many designs of bee attire that you just have to think about what your personal preference would be. Something that is good for one is not good for another. Have a wonderful day, great life and health. Cindi