The Sewing Place

Scissors

Sewingsue

Scissors
« on: April 20, 2017, 12:33:34 PM »
DF was praising her Ernest Wright shears on another thread, which set me thinking about scissors.

I use Fiskars softgrip because I find metal handles uncomfortable.
However, I do have a pair of George Butler 7 1/2" shears (almost certainly my grandmothers) still sharp, but a bit discoloured (worth cleaning and servicing? if so, where?).

Correction a pair of cleaned shiny shears which still cut beautifully.

Any comments on scissors/shears welcome.
« Last Edit: April 20, 2017, 14:44:11 PM by Sewingsue »
Bernina Aurora 440QE, Brother BC-2500, Singer 99K (1938), Juki MO-654DE overlocker, Silver Viscount 620D overlocker.

b15erk

Re: Scissors
« Reply #1 on: April 20, 2017, 13:06:38 PM »
OH bought me my Ernest Wrights and they are excellent, although I also need a smaller pair as well (hands getting old), but soon after, someone gave me an old pair of scissors and they are equally as good - especially since I had them sharpened!  These are Mundial branded, and made in Brazil, and are still sold.  A pair similar to mine is selling on Amazon for £97!!  :o

I'm very lucky, there is a local man who sharpens scissors, and does an excellent job, but I think Ernest Wright have a sharpening service.

Jessie
Jessie, who is very happy to be here!!  :),  but who has far too many sewing machines to be healthy, and a fabric stash which is becoming embarrassing.

BrendaP

Re: Scissors
« Reply #2 on: April 20, 2017, 16:22:20 PM »
I have 9½ " Wilkinson Sword (Fiskars) shears which are 20 odd years old which I use with lighter fabrics and some 7" Ernest Wright scissors which are better on heavier fabrics and Santa (DD) brought some Klasse duckbill scissors last Christmas.  They are all sharp and cut well.   :snip:

I also have umpteen pairs of small embroidery scissors and snips in varying states of sharpness.  The best are Ernest Wright stork scissors and my favourite are some tiny 2¾" scissors with really fine, sharp points which were complementary from EW when they replaced the above 7" scissors which were not right when I received them.
Brenda.  My machines are: Corona, a 1953 Singer 201K-3, Caroline, a 1940 Singer 201K-3, Thirza, 1949 Singer 221K, Azilia, 1957 Singer 201K-MK2 and Vera, a Husqvarna 350 SewEasy about 20 years old. Also Bernina 1150 overlocker and Elna 444 Coverstitcher.
http://paternoster.orpheusweb.co.

DementedFairy

Re: Scissors
« Reply #3 on: April 20, 2017, 16:50:56 PM »
I got my first ever pair of pinking shears THAT CUT last year [I always thought they were a pointless item, as previous ones just chewed the fabric.]
I do need some duckbills...
C'est moi!

Lowena

Re: Scissors
« Reply #4 on: April 20, 2017, 16:54:18 PM »
I use the same, household scissors for everything... fabric, thread, paper, card :|
It's not as bad as it seems as I only really do p and q, and so usually use my Sissix or my rotart cutter  :angel:
Triumph of hope over experience :D

BrendaP

Re: Scissors
« Reply #5 on: April 22, 2017, 19:03:27 PM »
I use the same, household scissors for everything... fabric, thread, paper, card :|

Do those scissors cut through fabric for the full length of the blades?
If they do you are lucky 0_0.  If they don't they either need sharpening or replacing.

Only doing P@Q still means that you need to trim away excess wadding/backing before applying the binding.
« Last Edit: April 22, 2017, 19:05:42 PM by BrendaP »
Brenda.  My machines are: Corona, a 1953 Singer 201K-3, Caroline, a 1940 Singer 201K-3, Thirza, 1949 Singer 221K, Azilia, 1957 Singer 201K-MK2 and Vera, a Husqvarna 350 SewEasy about 20 years old. Also Bernina 1150 overlocker and Elna 444 Coverstitcher.
http://paternoster.orpheusweb.co.

Lowena

Re: Scissors
« Reply #6 on: April 22, 2017, 19:05:44 PM »
To be fair Brenda, I rarely cut fabric with scissors, only when I've cut multiple pieces and it hasn't gone all the way through, so I don't really notice how / where they cut
Triumph of hope over experience :D

BrendaP

Re: Scissors
« Reply #7 on: April 22, 2017, 22:25:53 PM »
 :S :S :o :ninja: :snip: :snip: :snip:
Brenda.  My machines are: Corona, a 1953 Singer 201K-3, Caroline, a 1940 Singer 201K-3, Thirza, 1949 Singer 221K, Azilia, 1957 Singer 201K-MK2 and Vera, a Husqvarna 350 SewEasy about 20 years old. Also Bernina 1150 overlocker and Elna 444 Coverstitcher.
http://paternoster.orpheusweb.co.

elephun

Re: Scissors
« Reply #8 on: April 23, 2017, 03:12:23 AM »
Ooh- I like scissors

I have Gingher duckbills and they are excellent for trimming closely. I've had to have my husband loosen the screw for me as they were just too tight and hurt my hand. They are sharp and they are accurate!

My regular fabric shears are my mom's good ones she's had forever. I think they are Ginghers and they are great, but the steel handles are a little hard on my hand, so I had been wanting something different.

For Christmas 2016 and my birthday in January 2017, I decided that I would ask for shears/scissors.
 :snip: I wanted a great pair of fabric shears that would be easier on my hand, so I asked for Kai 7205 8" Professional Shears. Now that I have used them, the blades on the 8" shears are a little short, and I should have gotten the 9" or even the 10". They are excellent shears, though.
 :snip: I needed a pair of scissors built for pattern cutting (because pain in shoulder) and was very pleased when I saw Kai V5230 9" Bent Handle Scissors for stand up pattern cutting. So I asked for these, too. They are sharp, cut accurately, and I haven't experienced any pain.
 :snip: I also wanted to get a pair of micro-serrated scissors for cutting slippery fabrics. Kai has these in their Professional line, but I got the much less expensive Kai 3210 8" Serrated Patchwork Scissors for myself for my birthday. These blades do not seem short to me like the other 8" pair I got. I haven't had occasion to cut slippery fabric beyond a quick test, but the scissors seemed to perform well.

Everyday scissors:
I like Fiskars. I think the basic shears used for paper are pretty brilliant, and they stay sharp for a long time. The same shears even work well as fabric scissors if kept for that purpose alone. Note to self: buy little sharpener instead of buying new scissors  ;)

Utility Scissors:
The favorite I've had are Fiskars Titanium Nitride. They are serrated, and I got them at the home improvement store. They cut easily through tough stuff like plastic clamshell packaging, as well as paper and fabric. I cut thick or many layers of fabric nicely with them. I used to even use them to cut sheer fabrics, but I now have different serrated scissors for that purpose.

Terrible scissors I've had:
Scallop scissors, Pinking shears, and Thread Snips by Fiskars. Okay, terrible is an exaggeration on the first two: they sort of worked when I very first got them. The snips never worked.

My favorite snips and little scissors all come from Daiso and cost $1.50 each. They are sharp, sharp, sharp and easy to use.

I just looked at the Daiso website and it doesn't look like there are any stores in Europe, including UK. So sorry! It's a Japanese 150 yen store, which is kind of like dollar stores in the US (and probably pound shops in the UK). It's similar, but the base price is $1.50 and it has way better stuff than at the regular US dollar store chains, like sharp snips and little scissors.

Surest1tch

Re: Scissors
« Reply #9 on: April 23, 2017, 12:44:56 PM »
My good scissors are Japanese,  Shozaburo, incredibly sharp but also very heavy and quite difficult to wield in a domestic sewing room.  I tend to use Fiscars unless it's very heavy fabric, I find they are sharp, easy to handle and lightweight.

Sewingsue

Re: Scissors
« Reply #10 on: April 24, 2017, 08:50:14 AM »
Did a proper scissor/shears round-up (binned a pair of snips which have never worked).

Looks as if I have a good selection, but I could do with a pair of duckbills. I will have access to an Ernest Wright stand (and other traders) at the end of the week so will have to decide whether I want to go top of the range or not.
Bernina Aurora 440QE, Brother BC-2500, Singer 99K (1938), Juki MO-654DE overlocker, Silver Viscount 620D overlocker.

BrendaP

Re: Scissors
« Reply #11 on: April 24, 2017, 09:02:17 AM »
I was given some Klasse duckbills at Christmas and they are sharp and smooth to use.
Brenda.  My machines are: Corona, a 1953 Singer 201K-3, Caroline, a 1940 Singer 201K-3, Thirza, 1949 Singer 221K, Azilia, 1957 Singer 201K-MK2 and Vera, a Husqvarna 350 SewEasy about 20 years old. Also Bernina 1150 overlocker and Elna 444 Coverstitcher.
http://paternoster.orpheusweb.co.

Zigzag

Re: Scissors
« Reply #12 on: April 24, 2017, 09:14:11 AM »
Madeira duckbills and Ernest Wright scissors are really good scissors. <3

Sewingsue

Re: Scissors
« Reply #13 on: May 02, 2017, 11:32:37 AM »
Did a proper scissor/shears round-up (binned a pair of snips which have never worked).

Looks as if I have a good selection, but I could do with a pair of duckbills. I will have access to an Ernest Wright stand (and other traders) at the end of the week so will have to decide whether I want to go top of the range or not.
Just realised I never came back to update after my trip to K&S.
I now have a pair of Ernest Wright appliqué scissors and a pair of Fiskars pinking shears - definitely need to go round different stands checking prices.
Bernina Aurora 440QE, Brother BC-2500, Singer 99K (1938), Juki MO-654DE overlocker, Silver Viscount 620D overlocker.

Marniesews

Re: Scissors
« Reply #14 on: May 02, 2017, 14:27:06 PM »
I got a pair of Gingher 5" knife edge scissors while prevaricating on a pair of Ernest Wright – OH just got them while I shilly-shallied! Oh, but they're lovely and seem to cut through any fabric like the proverbial butter. I'm being scrupulous about returning them to their leather sheath after each session (and sometimes even during  ;)).

Nevertheless, I'm still feeling some patriotic guilt about EW and intend to visit their stall at Crystal Palace this year to inspect their duckbills. I'd like to compare them with some ginghers if I can find them there as my 5" ones are such a joy to use.

I was also really disappointed with Fiskars thread snips – they kept twisting in my hand when I gripped them! I've now replaced them with a pair of Kai's ergonic ones sold under the Prym name and I just love those. The Fiskars have been relegated to the secondary kit at my daughter's but I snarl when I use them.

I think I'm giving up on Fiskars now as the white handled Amplify scissors stopped cutting to the end after using them on lycra a few times. Very disappointing.

The budget scissors that still perform well for me (still cutting right to the end) despite a few years now of cutting that Fiskars-blunting lycra  :devil: are the Westcott Titanium Ultra-Smooth that cost me less than a tenner then in the Fabric World MK Bedford store. Not pretty like EW & Gingher but simply perfect for a newbie on a budget or someone wanting a cheap but good pair to take to classes etc.  :)
Hopefully back more regularly! Ballroom sewing may be permanently paused but bag making is the current focus.