What Are Pinking Shears?
As the name suggests, Pinking ‘Shears’ are a pair of scissors, which are designed in such a way with serrated blades that whilst they are used to cut some material, the unusual design of the blades leaves a notched edge. Such an edge does not easily fray and therefore it is not necessary to hem or oversew the material cut by Pinking Shears. Regarding the linguistic origin of Pinking Shears, the word ‘Pinking’ is of Middle English origin and is taken in the comprehension of making holes in something by piercing, pricking or stabbing. There are a plenitude of tasks for which Pinking Shears are popular. Specially with dressmakers, they count Pinking Shears as one of their most useful pieces of equipment. Like decorating cloth or leather with holes, perforations or eyelets and, later still, ornamenting edges by cutting into jags, scallops or narrow points and, finally, the regular triangular notching we know today.
