Decorative scissors are one of the most essential tools for scrapbooking. Scrapbooking is about being creative and putting your own touch on every page, and decorative scissors can really help you unleash your creativity and experiment with new techniques.
While you can certainly create decorative edges using stencils and designs, decorative scissors make the process go much faster. More importantly, they come in a ton of designs that can add a “wow” factor to your scrapbook page while still giving you a lot of room to experiment.
So, what are the best decorative scissors? The best decorative scissors come in packs of several designs, stay sharp for a long time, are made of sturdy and durable materials, are child-safe if you plan on crafting with children, and are easy to use.
In this article, we’ll show you our favorite decorative scissors and explain the types of decorative scissors you can find on the market.
Types Of Decorative Scissors
Decorative scissors have a patterned edge that allows you to cut paper in that pattern. These patterns are usually printed on the brightly colored handles of the scissors for easy identification.
Decorative scissors are available in single pairs or in sets as big as 24. Recently, interchangeable decorative scissors are also available, allowing you to switch between different blades, which makes these sets easy to store.
These fun scissors allow you to create so many fun patterns just by cutting the paper. You can find some very basic ones, such as wavy edge, scallop edge, and zig-zag edge, as well as a ton of other complicated designs such as a Victorian edge (which produces a lacy effect), cloud edge, or ripple edge.
Best Decorative Scissors
There are many companies that sell decorative scissor sets. If you are looking at your first step, you can simply buy ones with really basic patterns and branch out when you have gotten the hang of it.
There are tons of decorative scissor sets that include both basic edges as well as some creative edges, which you can mix and match to create your ideal design. Depending on the quality of the scissors, they will be able to cut through both lighter paper and heavier cardstock.
Similar to the tools used in other crafts, decorative scissors range from very basic, school-grade ones to professional ones. If you are interested in buying some decorative scissors for your collection, let’s take a look at some options below.
Rank | Product | Key Features |
---|---|---|
1. | ECR4Kids Kraft Edgers Scissors | 18 pairs, includes wooden storage rack |
2. | ANNOVA Art & Craft Scissors | 8 pairs, storage bag, mixed and matched colors |
3. | Asdirne Craft Decorative Scissors | 6 pairs, child-safe, rust-resistant |
4. | Kraft Edgers Decorative Scissors | 20 pairs, child-safe, storage case |
5. | Fiskars Paper Edger Scallop | Single pairs, universal grip, color-coded |
1. ECR4Kids Kraft Edgers Scissors
This set of decorative scissors come with 18 pairs that are able to cut a wide range of different designs, including some basic designs like Pinking, Scallop, Wave, and Cloud, to sophisticated designs like Lace, Victorian, Bubbles, Bounces, and Dragon Back.
The 18 pairs have brightly colored handles that make them easy to identify, and each pattern is clearly printed on the blade so you can easily pick out what you need.
The storage problem is also nicely solved with this set, as they come with a hardwood rack that allows you to keep them clean and organized.
This is a really fun set to have in the classroom or in your craft corner. They are friendly to children (older than 5) and let you explore your creativity with so many fun and unique designs.
2. ANNOVA Art & Craft Scissors
This is another fun set that can spark creativity in just about anyone, thanks to the bright and contrasting colors of the handles.
This set comes with eight pairs of scissors that are able to create many different types of edges.
The handles are made of plastic, while the blades are made of rust-proof (and very sharp) titanium alloy. Each pair is 6.1 inches long, which means they are friendly to both adults and teens.
This set comes with a storage bag with clear plastic pockets that allow you to see which pair you want and easily access them. This is a great storage solution for your craft bag, and you can simply let your creativity flourish with these decorative patterns.
3. Asdirne Craft Decorative Edge Scissors
This set of 6 decorative scissors from Asdirne is designed for the classroom, with multiple protective features that allow young children to explore their creativity with ease.
These scissor handles are made of non-toxic ABS resin, with rust-resistant stainless steel blades.
The blades are protected by rounded plastic tips, which means they are very kid-friendly, and the rounded tips also help to protect the blades and help extend their longevity.
The scissors are 5.3 inches, with smaller handles that allow kids to use them with ease. This set comes with six scissors that allow you to create different designs by cutting, including some basic waves, scallops, and victorian edges.
4. Kraft Edgers Decorative Scissors
If you want variety as well as quality, then this amazing set of 20 decorative scissors is a great kid-friendly option for you.
This set is perfect for a classroom setting since it has bright and fun colors that stimulate creativity, and there are plenty of scissors for everyone to share.
Each pair of scissors can create a fun edge for your papercraft project, ranging from the very basic edges to more whimsical and unique ones. These scissors are very comfortable to use, even for young children, thanks to the comfort grip design.
When not in use, you can store them in the included storage case, which allows you to easily identify each pair for the next use. This is partly thanks to the names and designs of the patterns that are printed on the side of the blades, so you can always access them when you need to.
5. Fiskars Paper Edger Scallop
Fiskars is known for making quality stationery and craft supplies, and they do have a wide range of decorative scissors available, which are sold as single pairs.
While you may need to buy multiple ones to get all the design options that you want, the quality of the scissors is what we want to talk about here.
These scissors are color-coded, with the name of the pattern printed on the side of the blade. The design of the handles is comfortable to use even if you are left-handed, so you will always get a precise cut no matter how you use them.
The handles are made of rubber for maximum comfort, and the steel blades ensure that they give you a precise cut every time.
These scissors are not suitable for children, but if you want some quality options that can prove useful in your craft corner, then these are the ones you should invest in.
Tips for Using Decorative Scissors
Using decorative scissors is straightforward enough – you just need a pair of decorative scissors that can cut the pattern that you want and some paper. Although these tools are pretty self-explanatory, there are some things you will need to get used to when you first work with them.
1. Draw A Guide Before Cutting
Since decorative scissors don’t cut straight lines, it’s hard to have a clear idea of the shape you’re cutting and whether you have the right size and shape that you want.
It’s simple enough with straight lines, but when you cut ovals and curvy shapes, you may end up with a wonky shape that doesn’t fit well into your desired outcome.
It helps to draw out a guide on your paper to help your scissors know where they’re going; that way, you can have a fun edge while still creating the shape that you want.
2. Avoid Breaking The Pattern
Since decorative scissors allow you to cut repetitive patterns, if there’s a break in the cut, you will need to line up the pattern with the edge of the scissors.
Carefully guiding your scissors while you cut may take more time, but it will help you avoid any awkward and misshapen corners in your cut.
3. Use Both Sides Of The Decorative Scissors
Did you know that each pair of decorative scissors can actually cut two patterns? By flipping the scissors around, you can actually get a different pattern, in addition to the standard edge.
If you’re unsure, you can experiment with some scrap paper and see for yourself! This is also a great way to practice using your decorative paper so that when it comes to the real thing, you can be certain of your design.
4. Practice
Decorative scissors can be a bit tricky at first, especially if you haven’t worked with them before. The first few lines you cut can be a bit wonky, and lining up the patterns is especially tricky for the fancy patterns.
As with anything, practice makes perfect! If when you first try out a new pair of decorative scissors and they don’t turn out the way you want, don’t give up! You can try the tips we have provided above and practice using some spare pieces of paper, and with time, you can create perfect patterns that look amazing in your design.
5. Cut From The Middle Of The Blade
Cutting your pattern from the middle of the blade will allow you some room to line up the pattern. This is also a great way to help you maintain the sharpness of the blade since the range of movement is very minimal.
Project Ideas With Decorative Scissors
There are so many fun ways that you can use decorative scissors in your scrapbooking and other craft projects. Let’s take a look at some fun ideas here.
1. Create Edges For Photos
Instead of creating a paper frame for your photos in the scrapbook, you can create a fun edge for your photos! Then, you can layer this photo on top of a piece of paper with the same cut, which gives a three-dimensional look that really highlights your memories.
2. Layer Several Designs
Speaking of layering, you can layer several edge designs on top of one another to create a full, dimensional effect. Each layer can have a varying weight, which adds another depth factor to your design.
When you do this, make sure to use no more than three designs, as it can visually crowd up the page. However, you can totally repeat the same design several times on varying layers to create interest.
3. Create Waves And Clouds
Layering several shades of white or blue can be a really fun way to create repetitive patterns, such as waves and clouds. This is a really fun design that doesn’t take a lot of effort to create, especially if you have a simple pair of decorative scissors.
4. Create Interesting Photo Mats
Decorative scissors can create some really fancy and sophisticated patterns, so using these as design elements in a photo mat can really add an interesting touch to your frame. You can use decorative scissors to cut the inner edge or the outer edge of the photo mat, and either way, it will create a sophisticated visual element to your creation.
5. Doodle On The Decorative Edge
Doodling on a decorative edge is a great way to add depth and visual interest without having to use a lot of different designs. This tip works best if you are working with a very simple and repetitive decorative edge since the doodles will be able to stand out.
6. Fringe Tip
Fringe tips are always really painful to cut, mainly because they are so tedious. Fortunately, there are fringe tip decorative scissors that can eliminate the pain of this process.
You can create elements like grass or even cut out fun confetti for a party. It’s really quick and painless, and it has so many great applications.
7. Layer With Washi Tape
Washi tape is another close friend of scrapbooking art. In this case, if you want to add interest to a piece of washi tape, you can use decorative scissors to cut the edge of a piece of tape to add a fun element to your scrapbook page with very little effort.
8. Trim An Edge Of A Scrapbook Page
If you want to highlight and “bookmark” a page in your scrapbook, you can use decorative scissors to trim the edges of the page itself! Not only will this be quite useful to remember the page later on, but this is also a playful way to create depth to the page without using any other materials.
Storage Options For Decorative Scissors
Many decorative scissors come in big sets, and if you really love crafting, then you ought to invest in several pairs of decorative scissors.
Unfortunately, unlike regular scissors that you can throw in a drawer, you will need to properly store decorative scissors so that you can easily access the design that you want later on.
Many sets of decorative scissors come with their own stand for this very purpose. If they don’t, you can use a necklace holder or a coffee cup stand to organize them, which will serve the same purpose.
Why is this necessary? If you have accumulated a collection of decorative scissors, you will need access to the design that you want, and a stand is the best way to organize your collection.
You’ll also want to keep them away from each other and from sticky things (tape, glue, glitter, or dust) that can accumulate on the bottom of a pencil holder or a drawer because these sticky things can greatly affect the scissors’ performance later on.
If you find that your scissors are sticky after cutting tape, you should wipe them down to maintain their performance for the next cut. Regardless, decorative scissors can become dull after some use. You can sharpen them by cutting several layers of aluminum foil, which will restore the performance.
If you want the decorative scissors to stay sharp, you can cut from the middle of the blade and stop until you nearly reach the tip. This way, the blades can stay sharp for longer.
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