The Sharpening Doc: A Review

Out of the blue last spring I got an email from Jane B., asking if I would help her out by letting her husband practice sharpening my embroidery scissors.  He had started a scissors sharpening business to keep busy in retirement and had sharpened all her scissors, so he needed more to work on.  By coincidence I'd just realized that my usual pair were starting to get dull so I packed them up along with a pair of very old scissors with curved blades my mother picked up at a yard sale eons ago that I use for trimming turkeywork.  I thought having regular and curved blades would give him a good workout.  So off they went to Oregon for sharpening.

Jane told me it would take 1-2 days for him to get them sharpened and back in the mail to me.  I think the scissors were gone 5 days, including a Sunday, which is really fast considering they went from the East Coast to the West Coast and back again! I shipped them out Priority Mail via the US Mail and they were returned to me the same way.  (I included a shipping label with my name and address to make the return easier for Jane and her husband.)

The Scissors Returned!

When they came back to Chilly Hollow, I was impressed to see they were carefully packaged to protect the tips.  They are perfectly sharp again, even the curved blades. There are still nicks and scratches on the scissors themselves due to long use but the blades cut as well as if they were brand new. Jane tells me that removing the scratches might dull the finish so I'll be happy with just having them sharp.  She also tells me her husband can do curved and pinking sheers as well as regular scissors.

I think it's a fabulous service, and I'm very pleased with how the scissors cut now.  I highly recommend you consider using The Sharpening Doc if you don't have a local sharpening service, which I do not.  The best I could do before Jane's offer was hope a sharpener would visit Joann's Fabrics in November to collect and sharpen my scissors.  The person they use does a nice job but it takes two weeks and they only come by once a year.

New Business Card, with Happiness Highlighted!

The cost to sharpen a pair of scissors at The Sharpening Doc is $5.00 but if the tips need to be restored because of a previous botched job, it's an additional $8.00. Shipping and handling is $12.00 on top of that.  And yes, you can send a batch of scissors.   The priority mail box they use will hold up to fifty pounds of goods, so you can include lots of pairs for the same return shipping and handling charge as long as you stay under fifty pounds.  The Sharpening Doc will figure out shipping charges for large orders if you let them know ahead of time.  The shipping and handling charge covers up to $50 in insurance, so if you are sending a very expensive pair of scissors, you might want to arrange more insurance both when you ship and when the box comes back to you.  You will get an email or phone call when your scissors are shipped back with the tracking number to monitor the package.

Payment should be via a personal check made out to The Sharpening Doc.

For further information and the form that should accompany your scissors, check out the Sharpening Doc's website or email thesharpeningdoc@centurylink.net.  Please note their small town of Gearheart, Oregon shares a post office and zipcode with Seaside, Oregon which can cause confusion at your post office.
https://thesharpeningdoc.com

Thanks, Jane B.!

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright June 21, 2018 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

Porcupine Laying Tools Video

If you are intrigued by the African porcupine needle laying tools popularized by Love You More, you'll want to watch this video review on BeStitched's website.
https://bestitchedneedlepointshop.com/collections/accessories/products/porcupine-quill-laying-tools

As a bonus there is also a video showing you how to use a laying tool on the same page.  You can also visit Love You More's website to see the range of these available.
https://www.loveyoumorenpt.com/porcupine-quill-layingtools

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright June 3, 2018 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

Don't Be a Thief

Enriched Stitch is having a sale on their instant downloadable stitch guides and a warning.
http://astheneedleturns.com/stitch-guide-sale-and-more/#comment-2013

Don't copy stitch guides or book stitch diagrams and then hand them out to all your friends. It's stealing and even if you have no qualms about that, remember that the world of needlepoint is small.  If folks realize that you copy guides, the shops and stitch guide writers will warn each other of your actions and it'll get harder to buy the supplies you want.

And as one commenter mentions in the link above, I take copyright seriously on Facebook.  If I catch someone repeatedly violating copyright on the Facebook Group Needlepoint Nation, they are removed from the group permanently and also blocked from viewing the group.   Many folks don't realize that copying items from a book or guide (or taking photos of a diagram on your phone from a shop's books) is stealing.  But it is.  If you want to pay more for books and guides or want to risk banishment from Needlepoint Nation and being whispered about among the guide writers, handing out copies of something you bought is a good way to achieve that.  The stitch guide writers especially are my friends and colleagues and I will do my best to protect their businesses.

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright July 3, 2018 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

K's Creations Has a Swivel Ball Table Clamp UPDATED

K's Creations has come up with a table clamp that works with the ball swivel on their floor stand. If you have one of their metal floor stands, you can simply remove the ball swivel and purchase the clamp and assemble them to use.  If this doesn't make sense to you, check out the video posted by BeStitched here.  This is a shop exclusive, by the way, so BeStitched is the only place you can buy these.
https://bestitchedneedlepointshop.com/products/ks-swivel-ball-table-clamp

UPDATE: Brenda has purchased one of these and shows off the first way she set it up to use.
https://brendasneedlepointstudio.blogspot.com/2018/07/table-clamp-712-18.html

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright June 3, 2018 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.

A Peek Inside The Needlepointer

The Needlepointer has started doing video tours of the shop occasionally. These are always fun to watch but this time they have a Melissa Shirley trunk show, some lovely tote bags and the Leigh Designs ice cream social models to show off.
https://vimeo.com/277722963

Now I'm hungry!  Who wants to share a banana split with me?

Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow
Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com
and at http://chstitchguides.blogspot.com
© Copyright July 3, 2018 Jane M. Wood. All rights reserved.