Great post. Informative. Sometimes that happens to me fish-tale ends!, never thought about using a stiletto. Guess I need to buy one and give it a try. Thanks
Kathie

wow- I only used the stilleto to turn corners right side out! I am going to try this now. Great post . my favorite stilleto is a cuticle stick!

I have broken a stiletto by sewing "on" it. But I do appreciate that it wasn't my finger!

Great post, thanks.

I've used a stiletto for years & yes, there is something about using it to hold the seams together that makes a more finished seam than when I use pins. I use fewer pins now for that reason but it does take practice---that is how I began sewing & I do not know the difference!

I just use my seam ripper as a stiletto when I need one. Good tip about the fishtailing.

Another awesome set of tips! Carrie, you are THE BOMB!!!

Love, love, love my white Clover seam ripper(s)! Much sharper than any other brand I've used and I definitely do my share of unsewing!

So, I guess I learned the wrong way to use a seam ripper from my mother. And she always "drove" right over the pins...

I love using a stiletto and mine is an antique hat pin of my grandmothers.

A helpful hint. 40 years or so ago , I made a dress and apron in the Holly Hobbit (?) style for Easter. I went so far as to embroider the dress and so forth of the on the front of the white "Pinafore"" using the same fabrics. New mother, new sewer. The very last thing I had to do was open the buttonholes on the back of the pinafore. I used my seam ripper to open the buttonholes, and of course you can see what is coming....the seam ripper slid through the shear fabric, and I had a 2 inch opening! I was distraught. Then I thought, I'll just reverse the closing and put the buttons on the other side of the closing. I carefully zigzagged the ripped button hole closed, moved the buttons, put in new buttonholes, and when closed, the rip was under the buttoning tab.
What I learned was this: ALWAYS put a pin horizontally where I needed to STOP! Then I could not go too far. It has served me well over the years, and no more accidental overzealous seam ripping. I hope this makes sense. Basically the back of the pinafore opened like a man's shirt vs. a woman's. No one ever noticed. But it was my worst and best use of a seam ripper! I hope this makes sense...hard to describe the mistake in writing:)

Interesting tips thanks , but what is the point of the little red ball on the tip ?

I had no idea that seam rippers need to be replaced because they become dull -- makes sense. Guess what I'll be buying with my Joann's coupon this week :) Love all your quilting insights -- very practical and helpful!

I always use a stiletto ... the "Purple Thang" is my go to one but a bamboo stick is my backup. Something valuable that I learned at the last August AQS show in Grand Rapids was at a "talk" by Sue Nichols on her tips for piecing. Quite simple, really. To avoid most fish-tailing you never, ever, EVER lift your hands up off your work until the sewing machine is completely stopped and the needle is no longer moving. I thought it was too simple to work ... and it did take repeated patience and practice ... but it DOES work. Don't lift your hands (or stiletto) off your work until your sewing machine and the needle are completely stopped. Fish tailing eliminated!!

if there's a Daiso near you (it's the Japnaese $1 store, except the price is $1.50), you can find a stiletto for $1.50 in the cooking section--it was labeled as an ice chipper once and something else (takoyaki skewers? something like that) another time. nice wood handle and sharp point--and can't beat the price!

Very well written and understandable explanations. Thanks for the information and tips. I am well acquainted with my seam ripper and I too have used it as a stiletto on occasion. I should use it more often as a stiletto.

My favorite stiletto is That Purple Thang! which is about $3 and has a nicely curved tip which is thin but sturdy on one end (which is handy depending upon the application) and a flat 1/4" square on the other with a slit built in that I use to hang it on a pretty ribbon by my machine, sometimes my neck. I also will use it carefully on my ironing board to hold the edge of a piece while I press, saving my fingers from the heat. I don't touch it with a hot iron, just let it hold until the iron get there.

I have also used it to get fine points pushed out as the tip is just gently rounded and I have better luck with it than a pointy tip object like a knitting needle.

The manufacturer doesn't waste money on fancy packaging, just has it attached to a business card explaining all the cool things that you can use it for. Clever and functional! I like to give them as gifts to young and new sewists and quilters.

Thanks Linda H., I will try using my Purple Thang to help with the fishtail! I didn't know why I got that, thought I just sewed crooked!

There's a little quilt shop in Lake Chelan, Washington where I saw the quilt that inspired me to want to learn how to quilt. I had just gotten my first sewing machine as a gift from my sweetheart after I tried to sew using his great-grandmother's machine found in the rafters of the shed. This quilt was stunning! I was in awe of the fabric and colors, not even aware that it was almost all applique... I stared in awe at it (still do every Christmas trip when they display it) for the entire trip and finally went inside. I had never been to a fabric store that wasn't a big chain company in the mall. Oh, I fell in love with the quality of the fabrics! I got quite an education that day. I didn't have much money so I came home with a few fat quarters from Moda, i don't recall the name but they were a Valentines theme, a simple table runner pattern and a Clover seam ripper. I could instantly tell the difference from the little plastic seam ripper I had always used. Just this Christmas season, that first Clover ripper became dull after cutting buttonholes in a quilt sandwich. I blame the batting. Luckily, I picked up another one and should be good to go for another decade or two. And I grabbed the pattern of that quilt! Last copy they had! I am learning applique now, knowing someday I will find a fabric line that I can substitute and make my very own version of Frolic. I love small businesses and so glad we have quilt shops around today that care about the customer and helping new quilters to get sewing!

Bamboo skewers (like you use for shishkabobs) are the perfect tool for a stiletto. If you accidentally get it too close and your needle hits it, the needle will just go through it. If you hit a metal stiletto with the needle, you can have real problems ... such as the broken needle flying 'somewhere', and your machine possibly being damaged. I use the skewers all the time ... they're cheap to replace if you break one too!