All About Scissors And Shears
Friday, September 26th, 2008 Subscribe To Our Feed
For doing any sewing, it’s necessary to have at least one pair of scissors. In fact, even if you aren’t doing any sewing, every household needs some scissors! It’s very important to have at least one pair because they’re a very useful tool.
Scissors vs. Shears
For starters, though people often use the names interchangeably, scissors and shears aren’t really the same thing and are meant to perform different tasks. Shears are used for the heavier cutting jobs, whereas scissors are best used for lighter cutting jobs such as trimming or clipping threads.
Shears For Strength.
Generally, a pair of shears measure about 6 inches or more in length. You hold the shears by putting your thumb through the smaller ring handle, and inserting two or three fingers through the larger ring handle. Holding the shears by placing your fingers through these rings gives better leverage to perform the heavier tasks for which shears excel
Scissors Are Smaller.
Scissors range in length from 6 inches on down to 3 inches or even less. Besides scissors being smaller than shears, they also have handle rings that are of equal size.
Choosing Quality Scissors and Shears.
Steel is used for making most scissors. Most shears and scissors are made of either carbon or stainless steel. Carbon steel, the first type, is used to make scissors with the blade and the handle formed in one continuous piece. Carbon steel is very strong and stay sharp. To keep them from rusting, carbon steel scissors and shears are usually plated with chromium or nickel.
The other type of steel scissors and shears are those made from stainless steel. A plastic handle is usually fitted to the stainless steel blades. These scissors aren’t as sturdy and don’t retain a sharp edge as long. Stainless steel scissors are also harder to re-sharpen. However, stainless steel shears and scissors are generally cheaper than their carbon steel counterparts.
Type of Scissors.
There’s a wide variety of shears and scissors available. Here’s a small sampling:
- Applique Scissors: Offset for level cutting
- Bent Handle Dressmaker Shears: Allow the cutting blades to rest flat on the table
- Easy Grip Scissors: With larger handles for those having difficulty holding scissors
- Embroidery Scissors: Used for cutting embroider threads
- Finishing Shears: Either as pinking or scalloping shears, used to cut ravel-resistant seams
- Heavy-duty Shears: For cutting leather, upholstery, drapery, etc.
- Thread Snipping Scissors: For cutting loose threads off sewing
There are also shears made for left-handed people, household scissors (all-purpose, poultry shears, etc.), electric scissors, scrapbooking scissors, paper scissors for children and more.
There is some sort of scissors for just about any task.
Caring for Scissors and Shears.
The first and foremost rule of scissors: Scissors should ONLY be used to cut the materials for which they were designed.
Absolutely do NOT use shears for anything other than their intended use. Shears meant for cutting material shouldn’t be used for cutting anything else. If you use scissors for something other than the materials they were intended to cut, that will dull the blades.
Shears and scissors should be kept dry and dust free, with an occasional oiling at the screw. Keeping scissors and shears in a safe place like a sewing basket, or with higher quality cutting instruments, the box they came in, will help protect the points. Additionally, scissors should be stored in a closed position. Setting down scissors and shears in an open position is the most common cause of dull blades.
High quality scissors and shears can be re-conditioned by the manufacturers or other companies providing that service.Reconditioned scissors are as sharp as new.
The Summed Up Story of Shears And Scissors.
For scissors to be used round the house, cheaper scissors work fine. If a cheap pair of scissors or shears have dull blades or get broken, it’s not an economic burden to replace them. For cutting fabric and other sewing chores, a good set of shears is a wise investment.
Keeping your shears and scissors in top shape will reward you with easy cutting. That will make your sewing a shear pleasure.
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