Sarah Mitchell 
Quick Answer: The claw grip is the foundational knife safety technique. Curl your fingertips under and place your knuckles against the flat of the blade as a guide. The knife slides against your knuckle rather than your fingertips — so even if it slips, you’re protected. Here’s something I don’t think gets talked about enough: … Read more
Quick Answer: The dishwasher is the single biggest cause of dull kitchen knives. The combination of banging against other items, prolonged high heat, and harsh alkaline detergent damages the blade edge rapidly…. Knives go dull — that’s just life. But there’s a real difference between knives that stay sharp for months and knives that feel … Read more
Quick Answer: Never put a bamboo cutting board in the dishwasher. The combination of prolonged heat, moisture, and harsh detergent causes bamboo boards to warp, split along the grain lines, and delaminate —… A good bamboo cutting board is one of those kitchen things you buy once and want to keep forever — harder than … Read more
Quick Answer: We come back to this one again and again on this blog, and honestly? For good reason. A bamboo steamer is made from one of the most sustainable crops on the planet, uses zero energy beyond a pot of boiling water, has no sketchy non-stick coatings, and with a little basic care it’ll … Read more
Quick Answer: Blades bang against each other or against other utensils in a knife drawer, and those impacts gradually roll and chip the edge. A knife stored on a magnetic strip or in blade-by-blade block slots has its edge protected — meaning it stays sharp a whole lot longer between sharpenings. How you store your … Read more
Quick Answer: Whetstones are rated by grit number like sandpaper. Lower numbers (120-400) are coarse and remove metal quickly — used for repairing damaged or very dull edges. Medium grits (800-1200) are the main sharpening range for regular maintenance. Higher grits (2000-8000) polish the edge to razor sharpness. A 1000/6000 combo stone handles about 90% … Read more
Quick Answer: Dull knives get replaced more often. Sharp knives that are properly maintained can last decades. From an environmental standpoint, keeping your existing knives performing well beats buying new ones… Here’s something most people don’t realize: a dull knife is actually more dangerous than a sharp one. You end up pressing harder, losing control, … Read more
Quick Answer: General kitchen scissors handle herb snipping, cutting pizza, and opening packaging — they need sharpening every few months with regular use. Poultry shears are heavier-duty and cut through bone and… Honestly, kitchen scissors might be the most overlooked tool in the whole kitchen. I use mine almost every single day — snipping herbs, … Read more
Quick Answer: Fabric shears are made from higher-quality steel and sharpened at a finer angle than regular scissors. That makes them really vulnerable to hard materials like paper or cardboard — even one crafting session with the wrong material can set you back. Fabric scissors aren’t just “nice scissors.” They’re a different tool entirely, and … Read more
Quick Answer: Scissors get dull in two ways: the blade edge loses its sharpness through use (which requires actual sharpening to remove metal), and the blades fall out of alignment so they do not meet cleanly — and honestly, most dull scissors at home are dealing with both at once. There are so many scissors-sharpening … Read more