Shears and scissors are needed tools if you plan on doing any sewing. In fact, even if you aren’t doing any sewing, every household needs some scissors! Because they’re such a useful tool, it’s important to have at least one pair.

Scissors vs. Shears

To start off, though people often use the names interchangeably, scissors and shears aren’t really the same thing and are meant to perform different tasks. Scissors are best used for lighter cutting jobs such as trimming or clipping threads, while shears are used for the heavier cutting jobs.

Shears Are Strong.

Shears are generally 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 being smaller than shears, the handle rings are of equal size.

Making Quality Scissors and Shears.

Most scissors are made of steel. Two main types of steel, carbon and stainless, are used in the manufacturing of scissors. The first type of steel, carbon steel, is used to make scissors with the handle and the blade formed in one continuous piece. This type of steel is very strong and stays sharp. To keep them from rusting, carbon steel shears and scissors are usually plated with nickel or chromium.

Stainless steel is the other kind of steel used to make shears and scissors. Each metal blade is fitted with a plastic handle. Stainless steel scissors aren’t as sturdy and don’t retain a sharp edge as long. Once dulled, these scissors are also harder to re-sharpen. However, stainless steel scissors and shears are generally cheaper than their carbon steel counterparts.

Types of Scissors And Shears.

There are all sorts of scissors and shears 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, paper scissors for children, scrapbooking scissors and more.

There is some sort of scissors or shears for just about any job.

Taking Care of Shears and Scissors.

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. It dulls the blades if you use scissors for something other than the materials they were intended to cut.

Occasionally oil scissors and shears at the connecting screw, plus keep them dry and dust free. Keeping them in a safe place like a sewing basket, or with higher quality cutting instruments, the box they came in, will help protect the points. Also, scissors should be stored in a closed position. The most common cause of dull blades is setting down shears or scissors in the open position.

High quality shears and scissors can be re-conditioned by the manufacturers or other companies providing that service.Reconditioning makes the shears and scissors as sharp as new.

Summing Up Scissors and Shears.

For scissors to be used round the house, cheaper scissors work fine. If a cheap pair of shears or shears get broken or the blades become dull, it’s not an economic burden to replace them. For cutting fabric and other sewing jobs, a good set of shears is a wise investment.

Keeping your scissors and shears in top shape will reward you with easy cutting.  That will make your sewing a shear pleasure.

This entry was posted on Friday, September 26th, 2008 at 10:36 pm and is filed under Embroidery. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.