I often put a little freebie into my parcels going out to regular customers - only something little as a token of appreciation for their continued support of my business.  I bought a big bag of seam rippers from my wholesaler, to sell on the site, but also to use as a little free gift.  However,  so far, haven't put any of these into a package unless they have been ordered.  Why? I  am frightened people might get the wrong idea about my opinion of their sewing! - a bit like giving someone smellies for Christmas .. 

The thing is, a sharp seam ripper is an absolutely vital tool for any seamstress or corsetiere.  Believe it or not, seam rippers get blunt very quickly.  The better you are at sewing, the blunter your seam ripper is likely to be.  It's a sad fact but I probably use my seam ripper, more than my sewing machine! 

Now these seam rippers are the best I can find and the cheapest!  They cost £0.50p.  I don't believe in spending lots of money on a seam ripper because you do have to replace them so often.  Before I bought in bulk, I would buy 4 or 5 of these seam rippers at a time from my local haberdasher.   I still always make sure I have a personal stock of these and mark my current one with a blob of nail varnish - this way, the new sharp ones don't get used until the current one is blunt and in the bin. 

If you get into the habit of using a sharp seam ripper, you will soon know and appreciate the difference between a sharp one and a blunt one - a sharp seam ripper will unpick your stitches faster and with much less risk to the rest of your sewing.  So! If you haven't replaced your seam ripper for a while, I urge you to assess the situation and replace  your seam rippers frequently for best sewing results. And if you do happen to get one from me that you didn't order, it's a gift but not in a bad way ;)