Pinking shears

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Pinking shears are scissors, the blades of which are sawtoothed instead of straight. Pinking shears leave a zigzag pattern instead of a straight edge.

Pinking shears have a utilitarian function for cutting woven cloth. Cloth edges that are unfinished will easily fray, the weave becoming undone and threads pulling out easily. The sawtooth pattern does not prevent the fraying but limits the length of the frayed thread and thus limits damage.

These scissors can also be used for decorative cuts and a number of patterns (arches, sawtooth of different aspect ratios, or asymmetric teeth) are available.

The cut produced by pinking shears may have given its name to (or be derived from) the plant name pink, a flowering plant in the genus Dianthus with "pinked" edges to its petals. The colour pink was also named after these flowers.

Louise Austin of Whatcom, Washington, received United States patent number 489,406 on January 3, 1893 for "Pinking shears". The patent describes how "pinking scissors or shears" are superior to the existing tools at the time, "pinking irons" and "pinking cutters". The operation of the shears are described as "pinking" or "scalloping". There are references to "cut ornamental openings in the body portion of fabrics" but no references to the more utilitarian function of preventing fraying.