After sewing for 14 years, I have learned a few things about my likes and dislikes when sewing.
Scissors is one of those things that I know right off, when I grab a pair, if they are going to complete me.
Weird.
This isn't a romance novel.
But, just like picking a spouse to love forever...A pair of scissors can make or break a project. welp, this analogy is going a little far, but you get the picture...
So here are a few things I have learned along the way about scissors for sewing. Especially when it pertains to rag quilting.
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Choosing the Right Scissors
Rag quilting requires a lot of scissors work, especially if
you are making any project larger than a small pillow or bag. Even with the
right scissors and a small project, your hand will become tired from the
repetitive snipping of the exposed seams. With the wrong scissors, snipping can
be very difficult. To choose which scissors to purchase or to see if you have
the right scissors in your stash, look for scissors with these features:
•
A short
blade. This is a must. You can try to cut the quilt with your regular
sewing scissors, but you will not be able to cut all the layers at once and you
will have more holes in your quilt from cutting the seams.
Shorter blades also provide a
more accurate cut each time you snip and are more powerful and strong because
of the shortness of the blades. If you do accidentally snip through the seam as
you are clipping, it isn’t hard to fix, but who wants to resew what they have
already sewn once?
•
Spring-loaded
open. Another must-have, the spring will open the scissors for you after
you have closed them, which will reduce your hand fatigue.
• A serrated blade. A serrated blade grips the fabric as it cuts
through the layers and will greatly reduce the chance of the scissors slipping
and accidentally cutting through a seam.
•
The right
fit for your hand. The scissors should be comfortable in your hand. Just
like every product on the market, rag quilting snips come in all shapes and
sizes. Some have the standard holes for your fingers to grasp as you snip, some
are straight handles, others are padded, and some are made for tabletop snipping.
Some scissors handles are longer than others, and some are more compact.
If possible, try
a couple in your hand to see how they feel.
My Favorite Scissors for Rag Quilting
These 3 scissors are from
different price points with different strengths and weakness. I hope my
experience with each type will help you choose which pair of scissors is right
for you.
Tip
Your hands
may become sore and fatigued, especially when clipping a large project. But you
can do it! If you are going to make one rag quilt in your entire life, don’t
spend extra money on expensive rag-quilt scissors. But buying a $10–$15 pair of
scissors will be worth it.
They work great
because they have short and strong blades, which easily cut all the way to the
tip of the scissors. I really liked them when I was making a quilt just every
once in a while. When I started to sell the quilts and had a lot of clipping to
do, I realized that the handles gave me blisters and dents in my fingers
because they are not padded. They also are not spring loaded, so my hand was
getting tired easily and quickly.
These scissors were about $13. My
husband still prefers these scissors over any others that we have tried (and
yes, he helps me clip a lot of quilts).
These scissors
are very strong and compact.
These snips are
spring loaded, so that your hand does not get as fatigued. Another nice feature
is the large finger loop so the scissors do not slide through your hand as you
go along snipping.
These snips are amazing for projects with really
thick layers (like denim and Minky), or many layers of fabric. They are very
strong and precise because of the short length of the blades. My biggest
complaint is that they are pretty long from the point to the end of the
handles. When I clip with these, I need to hold the project further away from
my body than is comfortable for a long period of time. These run about $20 but
can be found at Joann’s and other fabric stores as well as online.
Heritage Cutlery 6 1/2'' Spring Loaded Rag
Quilting Snips My absolute favorite
scissors are the 6 1/2'' snips from Heritage Cutlery. They are spring loaded
and have short serrated blades and padded straight handles. These are the most
expensive of the scissors, but are well worth the investment.
These babies will cut through 7–8 layers of fabric at
a time. They never cause hand fatigue. I am in love with them. They work like a
charm. The only thing that I don’t like about them (isn’t there always something)
is that there is no finger loop, so my hand slides up and down the handle as I
am cutting. It does not hinder my cutting, but it is annoying to readjust my
hand every few minutes. These babies will run between $30-$40 and are easily
found online
Great Scissors, But Not For
Rag Quilting
You may be wondering, do I really
need to buy some more scissors? Instead of spending another $10–$30 on
scissors, you could buy a lot of fabric! You may think that you have a pair of
scissors in your stash that will work great, but maybe not. Here are a few
scissors that I use all the time, but not for rag quilting, and why.
Gingher 8'' Knife-Edge Dressmaker’s Shears These are my go-to dressmaking scissors.
I use them daily. They are amazing, but they don’t work for rag quilting. The
blades are too long. They may be really sharp and strong, but the length of the
blades causes them to separate as you try to cut through several layers of
fabric. They also will not grip the fabric because they have a smooth edge, not
serrated. They are not spring-loaded and the handles are not padded. Your hand
will hurt after trying to snip even just a few inches. They are awesome
scissors, just not awesome for rag quilting.
Kai 8" Dressmakers
These are my new favorite. They definitely trump Gingher scissors. They have a smoother cut but still have the awesomeness of the Ginghers. Both are amazing scissors.
Olfa 5'' Precision Smooth-Edge Scissors These
scissors, often called thread snips, are small and comfortable in my hand, but
the blades are too long, and not big and strong like a rag quilting snip. These
scissors are my go-to scissors to keep at my sewing machine to clip threads,
but they just aren’t strong enough to go through very many layers of fabric.
These scissors almost have it
all, but the blades are not as strong as I would like them to be for projects
with lots of layers, or heavier fabrics, or even for clipping a large project.
They are ok, but for the same amount of money you can purchase a pair of
scissors better suited for rag quilting. Remember, having the proper tools for
the project will make rag quilting a pleasure, instead of a pain.