BUTTERKNIFE | Thursday, November 5, 2020
#BUTTERKNIFE: most great technology doesn’t need a constant supply of electricity. This #Japanese - again - butter knife solves the thorny problem of cold butter. Pushing the blade against the surface of the butter results in easily spreadable noodles of butter being cut out - see the sharp edges in the bottom picture, and the other serrated edge is able to spread butter or scrape burnt bits off your toast. #technology
CUT | Thursday, November 5, 2020
#CUT: we have some new scissors in the house. Nothing expensive, but they are very important, as anyone forced to use crappy scissors will know. These three are designed by the - extremely competitive - Japanese. The first two have blades that curve away from each other in order to maintain a more constant angle throughout the cut, which is the bane of conventional scissors and results in worse cutting performance near the tip of the blades. The first pair, the #FitcutCurve, are curved all the way along, and are titanium coated to resist difficult materials. And a 30-year guarantee. Sweet. They also made a fluorine-coated version which does not stick to packing tape, when opening parcels. Which we are probably all doing a lot of. The second pair, the #KokuyoSaxa, is straight with a curve at the end to improve cutting power when almost closed. A solid pair of conventional scissors for general use. Also comes in a fluorine-coated version. Finally, the #RaymaySwingcut, which has a pivot offset from the axis so that one blade travels further than the other, the added friction enhances the cutting power and the pivot also has the useful side effect of pushing paper away from your hands as you cut. #Japanese scissor technology has advanced past #Sheffield in the quest for ultimate performance. I do love Japanese #stationery, perhaps a little too much, but scissors are a crucial item in the home and crappy ones are really not worth bothering with. #lifeimprovementspecialist
