Guide to Choosing a Pair of Scissors

December 13, 2016 solespen

Within the broad category of office supplies, scissors are the unsung heroes. They give order to the piles of cardstock, fabric, and tape from our projects. They’re there for us when we need to cut off the tags from our new sweater. Whether you use your scissors for detailed craft work or just to get letters and packages open, a dependable pair of scissors is a must-have in every house and office.

Not all scissors are made equal. After testing all the different types that we carry on everything from paper to plastic tags to fabric, we’re excited to show you these hand-picked scissors that are a cut above the rest. You can click on any of the pictures below for a larger view.

What to Look for in a Pair of Scissors

Ease of cutting. You want to have the same kind of sensation as when you put a knife to butter. Scissors should cut through smoothly and cleanly.
Ease of holding. It’s ideal to have a pair of scissors that feels like it’s made for your hands. If they’re comfortable to hold and easy to control, scissors become an extension of yourself (in a weird Edward Scissorhands type of way).
Ergonomics. For those long projects where you’re constantly cutting, the ergonomics of a pair of scissors is important. If your hand tires quickly or is often strained and cramped, it’s time to switch scissors!
Blade length. Some people like longer blades as it takes less work to cut through something long (like wrapping paper). Others prefer shorter blades, so they can see more clearly what they are cutting for better precision and control.

Staff Recommendations

General Purpose

For the casual scissors user, your needs are simple. You’re cutting open letters, plastic tags, pieces of tape, and maybe using them for the occasional craft project. Let it cut and let it cut well is your motto and these two scissors do just that.

Kokuyo AiroFit Non-Stick Scissors – Wide Handle

Cutting fabric.

Video demonstration.

This is our go-to scissor if we need anything cut around the office or at home. It features grooves on the inside of the handles for a comfortable hold that allows us to cut efficiently. These scissors cut through paper, fabric, plastic tags, and tape effortlessly–they’re able to slice through 25 sheets of printer paper with relative ease. We like it because Kokuyo designed it with a non-stick coating that prevents sticky build-up over time, so it can cut through tape again and again without getting gunky.

Kokuyo AiroFit Non-Stick Scissors – Slim Handle

Slim model and wide model comparison.

Video demonstration.

If you have smaller hands, we recommend the Slim Handle version of the aforementioned Kokuyo AiroFit scissors. Its narrower handles allow you to have better grasp and control over the scissors. With the same features as its Wide Handle brother, neither comfort nor performance are sacrificed. They’re ideal for keeping around the office or the house, where you never know what you may need to cut.

Crafts

Crafting is serious business. A good tool can be the difference between a charming handmade gift and a DIY gone wrong.The crafter needs something that can get down and dirty to cut through whatever a project calls for and something that can do detailed work.

Kokuyo AiroFit Non-Stick Scissors – Wave

Features “waves” where you can rest your fingers.

Video demonstration.

Another pick from the Kokuyo AiroFit family, we chose this for crafters because of its innovative design. The extra “wave” on the body and an extra groove near the center allows your hand to fit nicely for complete control over what you’re cutting. With this pair, you can do the more detailed work of complex projects while still having the same capabilities of other Kokuyo AiroFit scissors. It cuts through cardstock, tape, and fabric with the same non-stick coating of other Kokuyo scissors.

Kokuyo Clippy Non-Stick Scissors with Clip

Clipped on the Life Notebook.

Video demonstration

Here’s another one that’s perfect for crafters. Again, it has the same non-stick features of the other Kokuyo scissors but with an added bonus–it comes with a holster that clips onto anything for convenient access. Clip it on your clothes, notebooks, or anything that’s nearby. We like using these scissors for any messy job because it’s so easy to clean. Just remove the rubber grips, wipe, and voila! Your scissors are as good as new.

On-the-Go

These scissors are the ones that you reach for when there’s a stray piece of fabric hanging from your shirt, or when you forgot to cut the tags off your new shirt this morning. We like to carry these around with us in our pen case or purse, because you never know when they may come in handy.

Sun-Star Stickyle Pen-Style Scissors

Spring loaded.

Cutting plastic tags.

These scissors are in disguise, but don’t underestimate it because of its compact size. They have a loaded spring that actually allows it to cut through 20 pieces of printer paper! Although they don’t have handles, they’re comfortable to use. However, we did miss having handles if we used these scissors for a long period of time since it was difficult to control after a while. Nevertheless, it’s effective for when you need scissors in a pinch as it cuts through plastic tags, fabric, and paper cleanly.

Kum PenCut Pen-Style Scissors

Hidden handles slide out.

Video demonstration.

Like the Stickyle, these scissors are meant to look like a pen when not in use. We like it because of its design–the flexible handles are hidden in the body but with a simple slide of the stoppers on the side, they’re out and ready for you to use. It takes a couple more tries than the Stickyle to cut through plastic tags, but it cuts through fabric and twine effectively. The lefties in our office really like this one, because it’s truly ambidextrous by just switching the position of the stoppers.

Kid-Friendly

Scissors are one of those school supplies that kids always need at school or at their extracurricular activities. You don’t want to hand them huge hunks of steel though, so we have some recommendations that will fit perfectly into a kid’s arsenal of school supplies.

Raymay Pencut Mini Pen-Style Scissors

Mini Pencut and regular PenCut comparison.

Video demonstration.

Even the PenCut Scissors have a mini-me! Roughly three-fourths of the size of the original, these ultra portable scissors can be carried in any kid’s pen case or backpack without adding any extra bulk. It has all the capabilities of the larger PenCut Scissors, including its ambidextrous qualities, but in a size that is suited for smaller hands. We also like that it’s attached to a lanyard so you can attach it to your pen case or backpack without worrying about losing it.

Shredding

We’re moving past the world of regular scissors into the more specialized realm of shredder scissors. There are times when you just don’t need a huge paper shredding machine, or when you want to shred other kinds of sensitive documents and make sure they’re completely destroyed.

Sun-Star 7-Blade Shredder Scissors

Shredding sensitive information.

Video demonstration.

It’s easy to channel Edward Scissorhands when you’re wielding this pair of scissors. With its 7-blade design, you can efficiently shred sensitive documents one at a time. (The force required to cut using these scissors becomes too large when you cut multiple sheets.) They also cut through fabric, so if you want to create a fringe or if you want to make frayed edges on paper, these will do quite well.

Sun-Star Shredder Scissors

Shredding the first line of the address.

Only illegible bits are leftover.

Somehow, “scissors” seem too light a term for this pair. We want to call them “destroyers” or “devastators”–something along those lines. The unique zigzag design along the blades mince whatever information you want to shred into illegible little bits. This lets you focus on just one part of the document, so you can still recycle the rest of the paper. These scissors can also shred credit cards, CDs, and other media.

Final Cut

We wanted to do something fun, but still show off the prowess of our scissors. For all the Star Wars fans out there, we found this twist on the traditional paper snowflakes that we used to make in grade school.

Star Wars template courtesy of Anthony Herrera.

Storm trooper snowflake, created using the Kokuyo AiroFit Wave.

Isn’t that neat? It’s certainly a twist to the regular snowflakes we used to make.

We hope our recommendations have been helpful in equipping you to find the best pair of scissors for your lifestyle. To see all our scissors offerings, visit the Scissors & Cutters section of our website.

Model	# of Paper It Cuts Through	Blade Length	Best For
Kokuyo AiroFit Non-Stick Scissors – Wide Handle	25 sheets	2.5 inches	General Purpose
Kokuyo AiroFit Non-Stick Scissors – Slim Handle	30 sheets	2.75 inches	General Purpose
Kokuyo AiroFit Non-Stick Scissors – Wave Handle	25 sheets	2.5 inches	Crafts
Kokuyo Clippy Non-Stick Scissors with Clip	25 sheets	2.5 inches	Crafts
Sun-Star Stickyle Pen Style Scissors	20 sheets	1.75 inches	On-the-go
Kum PenCut Pen-Style Scissors	14 sheets	1.75 inches	On-the-go
Raymay Pencut Mini Pen-Style Scissors	10 sheets	1 inch	On-the-go, Kids
Sun-Star 7-Blade Shredder Scissors	5 sheets	3.25 inches	Shredding
Sun-Star Shredder Scissors	5 sheets	2.5 inches	Shredding

SOURCE:http://www.jetpens.com/blog/guide-to-choosing-a-pair-of-scissors/pt/610

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