Shop Scissors Blog

Sweater Mittens

Do you have sweaters lying around your house that you haven’t worn in years? After years of wear, many retire sweaters to boxes in the attic or the back or drawers. However, you can still get years of use out of those sweaters, breathing new life into them by using them to make a pair of mittens to keep you warm and toasty this winter.

You will need…

• Paper
• Pencil
• Scissors
• Sweater
• Pins
• Sewing machine

1. Make a pattern by tracing one of your hands onto a piece of paper, with your hand at a 30-degree angle. Rather than drawing the individual fingers, draw a mitten shape around the outline of the hand, adding 1/2-inch (or more for bulky sweaters).
2. Cut around the pattern and pin it onto the sweater. Make sure, when you pierce the sweater with the pin, that you piece both layers. When you cut out the hand pattern you should have to pieces (both sides of the sweater).
3. With the right sides of the sweater facing, pin the cutouts together. Use a sewing machine to attach them together, leaving a 1/4-inch seam allowance. To create smooth curves around the fingers, pick up the foot and sew slowly, rotating the mitten as you sew.
4. To prevent your mitten from fraying, sew around the mitten again, this time leaving just a 1/8-inch seam allowance.
5. Turn the mitten right-side out and press the seams flat so they lay smoothly. Repeat these steps with the second mitten.

Not only will your new mittens make great use of those old, worn out sweaters, they also make great gifts for friends and family!

For more crafting tips, continue reading our blog. If you wish to purchase a new pair of scissors for your next sewing project, please visit us at ShopScissors.com.

History of Scissors

Scissors. We use them so often we don’t even think twice about them or how specialized they have become based on our needs. There are florist shears, kitchen scissors, sewing scissors, etc, all customized for their particular purpose. But it wasn’t always so convenient. With the help of Helium, we have provided a brief history of scissors.

The earliest scissors can be traced back to Egypt around 1500 BC. The rudimentary device was comprised of a single piece of bronze metal that was formed into a U shape. The ends of the U were sharpened into blades, with the curve acting like a spring so the blades moved apart after each cut.

The idea of the cross-bladed scissors was not invented until approximately 100 AD. These newer scissors resemble scissors used by gardeners or sheep-shearers. No further major developments were made again until 1761, when Robert Hinchiffe used cast steel to make a pair of scissors, increasing the durability and efficiency. Since then, many developments have been made to create highly specialized scissors for different uses: specialist tools for surgeons, safety scissors for children, electrician's scissors, and the list goes on and on.

Fun Activities for Kids to Practice with Scissors

It’s the dead of summer and your child needs to spend some time inside, out of the heat. You have already taught them the basics of how to use scissors properly and safely, as was covered in our previous post, but how proficient are they? Can they cut on a line? Here are a few fun activities from OT Mom Learning Activities to keep your children enjoying their summer out of the hot sun for a bit and practicing with scissors to prepare them for the coming school year.

1. Paper chain. Have your child cut out rectangles of varying lengths and approximately an inch in width. Staple or tape in loops and link together to make a chain to brighten a room or use as décor for a party.
2. Spider. Draw a circle on one piece of paper and nine lines length-wise on another piece of paper for your child to cut out. When your child is finished, there should be eight rectangles for legs and a large circle for a face. Encourage your child to be creative in drawing the face on the circle and decorating the legs. Tape or staple the legs to the circle and bend each “leg” near the top and bottom to create joints and feet. Finally, staple or tape a strip of paper in the center to simulate a strand of the spider’s “web,” which the child can hold on to and use to dangle the spider.
3. Caterpillar. Draw five or six circles of approximately the same size for your child to cut out and decorate. One circle should be decorated as a face. When finished decorating, tape together. You can also add pipe-cleaners to the head for feelers or to the first and last segments as feet.

As your child progresses in skill draw more challenging objects, such as fruit, or smaller objects, like windows in the side of a paper house, to create more of a challenge. Cutting out characters from coloring books can also be particularly challenging as your child improves upon his scissor skills.

Order children's scissors from ShopScissors.com.

Pink/Purple Titanium Straight Shears

A personal favorite just rolled into Shopscissors: and it comes with bold inspiring color. The 8” Pink/Purple Titanium Straight Shears sport blades three times harder than steel and a personality that is twice as awesome. No more traditional oranges or reds, this grip will make you feel confident and fun as you cut anything from paper, herbs, or even fabric.  These purple scissors are so tough, they are packed with a lifetime warranty, guaranteed to keep you crafting longer, and better. For more information visit ShopScissors.com.

Junior Splat Scissors: Colorful Crafty Fun

This summer introduce a little color and imagination into playtime with these Junior Splat Scissors. The paint splatter pattern is fun and bright, bringing a smile to parent and child alike. They come in three different paint splatter patterns, so your child can pick his/her favorite (friendly to little girls and boys). The stainless steel blades sport a blunt tip, making them safe and durable for ages as young as six. The finger bows also sport a ribbed grip, giving little hands something to stabilize against as they learn essential motor skills. Crafts have never been this fun!  Try the Junior Splat Scissors next playtime and see what all the moms are raving about.

DIY Wedding: Centerpieces

My favorite theme for a wedding reception is a tea party. It's flexible, easy, cheap, and yields a gorgeous turnout. So for table centerpieces, ShopScissors recommends gathering the following supplies:

• Two-three tiered tea tray (one for each table)
• Tea pots (one per table)
• Tea cups and saucers (one per guest at each table)
• Flowers (one that match the decor of your reception, or bouquet)
• Candles (tea lights, votives, and one pillar should do the trick)
• Sachet Bags (filled with tea)
• Ribbon (complimentary to your colors)
• Titanium Bonded Kitchen Snips

With all of these supplies, the rest is really up to you. Be creative with how you arrange the tea pot. Use the flowers pouring out of the tea pots spout, or in its well, put a pillar candle inside the tea pot, and put the votives or tea lights inside each tea cup, with flowers or flower petals staggered throughout the piece. Use your Scissors to curl ribbon, or bind it around the tea pots for added decoration.

The set up for this should be relatively quick the morning of the wedding. I would start prepping the centerpieces about a week before, and adding the flowers day of the ceremony (to keep freshness).

Flower Girl's Basket: DIY Wedding Series cont. . .

Sometimes the flower child is the pinnacle of a wedding ceremony. The congregation "oo's" and "awe's" as the cute little girl or boy slowly walks down the aisle, throwing flowers everywhere. I was once at a wedding where this adorable little girl (she must have been about four) took 5 minutes walking down the aisle, placing a single rose petal on either side of her. Just when we thought she would never get to the altar, she grinned  and dumped the rest of the rose petals down where the groom was standing and ran into her mother's arms (who was a bridesmaid). We all laughed and enjoy telling her the story every holiday.

So for the bride, who is putting together a wedding by herself, try out this easy do it yourself flower child basket. If you want to make things a little more fun for all parties considered, invite the flower girl over to help decorate her own basket, just provide her with a pair of kid friendly scissors, and all the items necessary for creating a basket.

For this project you will need:

• A decorative basket
• Ribbon
• Wrap and Ribbon Shears
• Flowers that match your wedding theme
• Rubber bands
• Florist's Tape

 

 

Shorten a Prom Dress 1, 2, 3

So you bought this beautiful floor length dress for prom. The price was right, it fits right, and it even matches your boyfriend's tuxedo just right. Then you find out that all the other girls at school (including your friends) are wearing shorter, knee length dresses. Don't despair, don't even think about taking that gorgeous dress back, just shorten the length a bit. Here's how you can in 3 short steps:

1. Put the dress on while you are sitting down and pinch where you want the desired length to be and pin. Make sure the bunched fabric is about 1/4" for sewing purposes.Take the dress off and continue to pin around in a straight line.

2. Next take a pair of hemming shears and cut the fabric below your pin line.

3. This last parts easy, just run a double stitch carefully along the hem, trim any excess fabric underneath and enjoy your new shorter prom dress!

Easter Basket Essential: Kids Scissors

Inspire creativity in your child this Easter with a pair of 5" Kids Scissors. These are durable and are currently available in a wide variety of colors that all feature Microban Antimicrobial technology, a material that resists the growth of bacteria. The whole pair of scissors spans a length of 5", and features a soft grip no slip handle for your child's fingers. They also come with a 10 year manufacturer's warranty, making these a pair of scissors that will last your child years. These are suitable for children of all ages due to the blunt tip and inner grind on the stainless steel blade (which also will guaruntee an accurate and dependable snip). Try out a pair of these brightly colored scissors today, they will be a great addition to your childs' creative Easter basket.