William Whiteley and Sons was founded in 1760 and have been designing and manufacturing amazing handcrafted industrial scissors in Sheffield, England, as a family-run firm since then. Many of its craftsmen’s skills have been handed down through generations and their shears and scissors are amazing. I use Whiteley and Co tools in the shop, home and studio and they are incredible pieces that will last a lifetime.

These are ‘duckbill napping scissors’, the plate on lower blade allows the scissors to sit flat to the surface being trimmed and stops any accidental cutting into the fabric. These are brilliant for embroidery trimming but really come into their own when used on anything with a pile. They are perfect for shipping pompoms or punch rug pile, it is possible to shape curves and smooth bulbous forms.

The handles are angled up and way from the blades to give room for shaping and trimming. They really are a fabulous piece of kit if you are an embroiderer, hand weaver, tapestry weaver, punch rug artiste or really for any form of textile work.

Dimensions: 15cm long 5cm wide at the handle

And a bit of superstitious tradition: If you are giving a pair of scissors as a present the receiver should always give you a coin in return (doesn’t matter how much, 5¢ is fine), the exchange is meant to ward off the severing of the relationship by the gift of blades…. fascinating huh??!