A couple of months ago I decided I needed a new pair of dressmaking shears. I’d been using the ones I’d got from Ikea which were brilliant when they were new but when you use them for cutting your hair and as a poking device their useful life slowly ebbs away. I did a bit of research mainly on Gertie’s Blog for Better Sewing as that lady definitely knows what she’s talking about when it comes to dressmaking. She had recommended Kai or Gingher scissors. I added Merchant & Mills scissors to the list as they were made of classic Sheffield steel and manufactured in UK. As I was going to the Stitching Show at Ali Pali I was sure I’d find at least one of these 3 brands there.
For such a big show there weren’t that many haberdashery shops exhibiting. Up and down all the aisles I went getting little filips of joy when I spotted their scissor sections. Only to get disappointed when the only ones I could find were those dreadful ones with the orange plastic handles. They were everywhere in their nasty plastic bubble wrapping. What I couldn’t understand was there were so many people buying lovely (and expensive) fabrics, then cutting them out with any old pair of scissors. Why weren’t there people at the stands loudly demanding better quality scissors!!!!!!
Anyway I’d given up on my hunt having resigned myself to an internet purchase. After a consolation coffee and huge sticky creamy bun (I needed a lot of consoling) I headed for the exit. I was almost outside when I noticed a small room to my left which seemed to have a lot of people in it. Off I went to have a look and found it to contain mainly college and dressmaking school exhibitors. I turned round to go out when I glanced down an aisle and saw at the end……wait for it……… a pair of these!!!
I pounced straight away. It was sheer joy to hold these beautiful scissors, the craftmanship just amazing. These are scissors that will outlast me, my children, my children’s children etc etc. I was one happy bunny on the shuttle bus back to the tube. Probably not the best thing to be doing, sitting on the top deck of a bus waving 10” steel shears around but I was happy. and I still am, they are an absolute joy to use and they have turned fabric cutting from a pain to an experience the equivalent of demolishing a plate of cupcakes!
Embroidering a Celtic design on my Singer Futura XL400
Linda xxx
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