This post contains pr products. The beautiful county of Devon is where I currently call home. With stunning beaches a handful of miles away in one direction. And the rugged hills of Dartmoor a stones throw the opposite way. It’s a wonderful juxtaposition of earths rich tapestry. But what many of you don’t know is that this is not where I was born. That particular honour goes to Yorkshire, more specifically Sheffield where I was both born and bred along with generations of my family as far as I can trace them back. I think this is one of the reasons I became so fascinated in making things by hand. And who can blame me with ancestors that worked in the steel and cutlery industries on which Sheffield built its name. But what’s this got to do with the best scissors for the job I hear you ask??
Well bare with me and I will explain. When I was little my father was the proud owner of a garage in Sheffield. Always good with his hands and an out of the box thinker he could fix just about anything. If it was designed to get you from A to B he could fix it. My favourite day of the week during this time was most definitely Saturday mornings. Not because Saturdays were his half day but because I got to go to the garage with him. I spent many happy hours passing him tools when I was young. Not only did I love the smell, the grease and the grime but also how something arriving broken and forlorn always left working again.
In fact my father is probably the reason I grew up loving DIY. He always told me you can do anything you set your mind to and I’ve carried that thought with me my whole life. Along with a fascination for the ‘old skills’ still alive today. Coming from an industrial area my ancestors worked in many of the crafts that Sheffield is still known for today. In fact my grandfather was a specialist in the steal industry during the war, working on armour plating. They were sent the newest piercing rounds and had to make armour plating that could withstand them. And one of my grandmothers was a polisher in the silver plating industry. I loved the stories they used to tell me.
And so the other day I googled my fathers garage you know just to see if it was still there. And low and behold it is and still instantly recognisable. That google search then sent me down a rabbit hole. I wonder what’s still made in my home town? It turns out that one of the things Sheffield was also famous for besides cutlery, silver and steel was scissor making. This I did not know! In fact at one point the city had over 2oo independent scissor makers! Sadly most are no longer with us but one company did catch my eye. A company steeped in history and still family run. And not only family run but still making scissors by hand despite establishing the company in 1760! There aren’t many companies that can boast being over 250 years old! I needed to know more.
So let me introduce you to Whiteley’s. The oldest scissor-makers in the Western world. Whiteley’s began life in 1760 and for the last 258 years they’ve produced a wide range of beautifully hand-crafted scissors and shears to cover your every cutting need. Today every pair of Whiteley scissors are still hand-made, assembled and tested by craftsmen. In fact the modern ‘Sidebent’ scissor was invented and patented by one of Whiteley’s master cutlers. He invented the blueprint for every pair of dressmaking and tailors shears you see today. That’s a piece of history right there that we’ve no doubt held in our hands at some point and not even known it.
The thing is though that the art of the master craftsman is a dying one. Each and everyone has earned that title through years working as an apprentice. And once they reach the level of master, they in turn are passionate about passing on their skills to the next generation. From glass blowers to farriers. Thatcher’s to the glaziers of stained glass windows. Through Masons and beyond. Without these amazing people the skills they practise everyday would die out. And some of those skills are now so rare that without Whiteley’s UK handmade scissors may no longer exist. And believe me that would be a loss to our nation because there is simply nothing quite like holding a pair in your hands. Especially when you hear just how much goes into making each and every pair.
Each pair of scissors starts it’s life at the forge where ‘blanks’ are stamped out of a bar of carbon steel. Something I’m no stranger too as my farrier brings a small version with him to my yard every six weeks to fit Fids (my horse) with a new set of shoes. The heat is the most intense I have ever felt! These blanks are basically the individual scissor halves in their rawest form. With each different type of scissor having a different tooling mould to the next. The edges of these blanks are then trimmed. Not only to remove the excess steel from the outside edges but the inside of the handle too.
Bow dressing is the nest step is the next step in the process of turning these blanks into actual scissors. This removes the roughness from the blanks. In fact the craftsman sand down every part of each individual scissors surface, including the insides of the handles. This in itself is a skill to behold! Each forging then goes through the ‘tapping’ process. A hole is drilled where the screw will eventually sit allowing the scissors to be fixed together to open and close. The tapping part refers to a thread being created within the drill hole. This will later take the screw to secure the two blades together.
At this point, the forging blanks are starting to look quite good. More scissor than lump of metal. But the steel is currently far too soft to hold and maintain a cutting edge. So to harden the steel, each blade is submerged in a furnace before quenching in oil. The heat causes the structure of the metal to change. And then by rapidly cooling it again in oil, this structure remains the same. Again a technique also used by farriers when hot fitting shoes only they quench with water. Conversely though, despite the blades now becoming so strong and hard they are now also brittle and liable to shatter! Overcoming this is easy though with tempering. By baking the forgings in an oven for a short while they reach the perfect stage. Of not only being strong but also no longer brittle.
At this point though the scissors halves are now looking slightly less attractive! After hardening and baking they look dull and blackened. And so the blanks now need polishing. Believe it or not, in times gone by this would be done by a line of ‘buffer girls’. A time consuming job that like any polishing involves working down through rough abrasive emery cloths, through medium to fine and super fine to produce the finest of shiny surfaces. In fact a shine so beautiful you could almost use the blades as a make up mirror.
Thankfully this is a much faster process and a machine now partially presides over the polishing. The ‘rumbler’ works in a similar way to the sea producing polished glass pebbles amongst the grains of sand. Filled with ceramic chips it shakes the blanks in a circular motion like a great big washing machine drum turned on its side. And through this several hour process the chips rub against the blanks slowly eating away at the dull surface to reveal a sparkling finish. And yet still the process of making a pair of scissors not complete. Now we have smooth and shiny scissor halves but as yet they don’t have a cutting edge. Nor are they a pair, both issues temporarily rendering them useless for cutting.
And this is where things really get interesting. To be able to cut the scissor blanks require a ground edge. Each blade having to meet its pair with such accuracy that it cuts perfectly. And keeps on cutting that way for many years to come. And this is what makes Whiteley’s different. They are the only scissor-makers left in the UK who still hand-grind their shears. This traditional art form because let face it, it is an art form has literally remained the same since Whiteley’s first began making scissors. In fact it takes so long to learn this skill that Whiteley’s master grinder Andrew is one of the last traditional scissor grinders left in the world. Imagine the enormity of knowing you are one of the last of your kind having started out as an apprentice at the tender age of only 14!
And so now we have 2 perfect halves. The upper and lower blades, a marriage in heaven yet to unite. And so they continue their journey onto the ‘putter togethers’ or ‘putters’. Another skill handed down from one generation to the next. Each scissor type requires a different process to marry the two halves. A skill that takes years to perfect enabling ever pair of scissors to create that perfect cut. Tweaking and testing each pair of scissors. Not one pair of scissors leaves that work bench until it cuts perfectly every time. And well with such beautiful scissors it’s only fitting that as a final touch Whitleys make them all the more personal with engraving.
I am so in love with this company. I really cannot express either just how beautiful their scissors are. It’s like holding a piece of history in your hands. There something wonderfully romantic also to think that these scissors will outlive me. That one day perhaps my granddaughter ( hich btw is not happening anytime soon that I know of) will chat to one of my sons finding out more about her ancestors. There is something substantial about these scissors too. You can feel quality exuding from them. And well cutting fabric is a dream. And they are so precise too, cutting from the base of the blades to the very tips effortlessly.
To finish up I shall leave you with the words of William Morris. He said as many of you know that,
“If you want a golden rule that will fit everything, this is it: Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.”
And Whitley’s scissors are just that. They are both useful and in equal measure beautiful. And yes, perhaps the initial outlay is more than you would usually think of spending on a pair of scissors. But just think how many you have bought and thrown away over the years. Mass produced with many ending up in landfill they only ever last a year at most before the screw comes undone or they no longer cut anything. Whereas a hand made pair will last a lifetime. And just as importantly will keep a dying skill alive. So this my friends is why Whiteley’s alone have the best scissors for the job. And almost any job at that too!
NB. Whilst Whiteley’s so generously sent me these scissors and to my amazement and absolute thrill also asked me to be an ambassador for their wonderful brand to boot, all words and opinions for ‘the best scissors for the job’ are my own. As you are I’m sure all aware by now I really and truly only work with brands that excite, impress and innovate. Not to mention always putting the customer first. Oh and I’ve used them to make 1 roman blind, 4 lampshades, upholster a stool and make a set of curtains so far so I really have given them a very good test drive.
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