
Most people, when faced with cutting something around the house, will reach into the junk drawer for the same dull scissors they’ve used for years. You know the ones: The handles are worn and scratched, the blades are coated with dried tape adhesive, and the tips are broken off from all those times you used them instead of a screwdriver.
But scissors — actually all cutting tools — deserve more respect. Each type is designed to slice a specific material, from long-bladed scissors, or shears, that work on flexible paper and fabric to stubby snips (like those shown here) meant for stiff metal and vinyl. Using them on something else is what makes them dull. That’s why household members who sew tend to murdelize those who borrow their fabric shears, even “Just for a minute, Honey.”
You’re better off assembling a collection of cutters to cover a variety of projects: Start with general-purpose utility tools, then add specialty items as needed. On the following pages, you’ll find a gallery of innovative cutters — some for specific jobs, others indispensible for everyday use. And none should ever see the inside of a junk drawer.




Where to Find It
Upright snips:
Model P6900
Midwest Tools and Cutlery Co.
Sturges, MI
800-782-4659
Napping shears:
Model #548 Heritage Cutlery, Inc.
Bolivar, NY
800-252-8452
Serrated snips:
Multi-Snip
Fiskars Brands, Inc.
Wasau, WI
Tinner snips:
Model V-10
Wiss, Coopertools
Apex, NC
Poultry snips:
Model #42914-001
Zwilling J.A. Henckels
Laminate nibbler:
Model MA72510
Klenk Industries, Inc.
Wilmington, DE
800-327-5619
Needlenosed snips:
Model P657
Midwest Tools
Offset snips:
Model #2073201
Irwin Industrial Tools
Hunterville, NC
800-461-7946
Carpet shears:
Model #718LRC
Heritage
Vinyl-siding snip:
Model VS12
Malco Products, Inc.
Annadale, MN
800-328-3530
Dressmaker shears:
Model G-8
Gingher, Inc.
Greensboro, NC
336-292-6237
Utility scissors:
Model #7241
Heritage
Electrical cable snips:
Model BXN
Wiss
Ergonomic snips:
Model 14-569
MaxSteel
All-purpose snips:
The Stanley Works
860-225-5111
Replaceable-blade snips:
Model M1200
Midwest Tools