<p>It's a seam ripper. You use it to pick up and cut stitches in a seam that you want to "unsew". </p>

<p>To use it properly, poke the longer end under the stitch, then push it through so the U part cuts it. Repeat every few stitches, then use either your fingers or the tool to pull out the threads.</p>

<p>To use it the quick &amp; dirty way, pull apart the layers of fabric until you can see the stitching <em>on the inside</em>, position the U part of the tool at the bottom of them, and push up between the layers of fabric to cut the stitches. You'll need to hold the fabric taut while you do this, and there's a danger of cutting the fabric instead of the stitches (hence the "proper" but tedious instructions).</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-12-19T00:23:40.977Z
As a kid, I remember seeing Mum work on a blouse with one of these, and somehow associated this tool with the term "bodice ripper".   Decades later that lead to much-hilarity at my expense.
Criggie
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-10-07T14:06:10.653Z
2016-10-10T04:10:58.807Z
2016-10-10T04:10:58.807Z
Martha
<p>I found this tool in my sewing kit, and I wanted to know what it is.</p>

<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/Vxu3om.jpg" rel="noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/Vxu3om.jpg" alt="small pointed tool"></a></p>

<p>It is a couple of inches (centimetres) long. It has two metal prongs on one end and one of them has a plastic ball protecting the tip. Do you have any ideas?</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-01-27T11:38:10.937Z
I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because while the tool is obviously used in arts & crafts, photo identification is really not a good fit for the site as it has low utility for others.
Joanne C
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-01-29T01:19:15.510Z
@JohnCavan there is nothing wrong with these questions. At least not yet.  I'm sure the consensus is that we should allow them for now until they get out of hand. We will almost always need pictures for these but it is tagged sewing and has a good description of what the item is. Not sure if you have seen [one of the metas about this topic](http://meta.crafts.stackexchange.com/questions/212/what-guidelines-should-we-set-for-identification-style-questions/215#215) yet? If you want to weigh on this I would suggest starting there.
Matt
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-01-29T03:06:38.353Z
@Matt - I'm curious as to how anyone thinks this question, as currently formed, is going to be of use to others... If the point of these sites is to create a compendium of knowledge, "what is this thing" isn't really going to be easily used as an index to it.
Joanne C
<sewing><tool-identification>
What is this tool in my sewing kit?
Dimitrios Desyllas
# What is this tool in my sewing kit?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2016-10-07)

I found this tool in my sewing kit, and I wanted to know what it is.

[![small pointed tool](https://i.sstatic.net/Vxu3om.jpg)](https://i.sstatic.net/Vxu3om.jpg)

It is a couple of inches (centimetres) long. It has two metal prongs on one end and one of them has a plastic ball protecting the tip. Do you have any ideas?

**Tags:** sewing, tool-identification

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because while the tool is obviously used in arts & crafts, photo identification is really not a good fit for the site as it has low utility for others.  
> **username_2**: @JohnCavan there is nothing wrong with these questions. At least not yet.  I'm sure the consensus is that we should allow them for now until they get out of hand. We will almost always need pictures for these but it is tagged sewing and has a good description of what the item is. Not sure if you have seen [one of the metas about this topic](http://meta.crafts.stackexchange.com/questions/212/what-guidelines-should-we-set-for-identification-style-questions/215#215) yet? If you want to weigh on this I would suggest starting there.  
> **username_1**: @username_2 - I'm curious as to how anyone thinks this question, as currently formed, is going to be of use to others... If the point of these sites is to create a compendium of knowledge, "what is this thing" isn't really going to be easily used as an index to it.  

---

## 1 answers

### Answer by username_3 on 2016-10-07. Score: 21 | Accepted answer

It's a seam ripper. You use it to pick up and cut stitches in a seam that you want to "unsew".

To use it properly, poke the longer end under the stitch, then push it through so the U part cuts it. Repeat every few stitches, then use either your fingers or the tool to pull out the threads.

To use it the quick & dirty way, pull apart the layers of fabric until you can see the stitching *on the inside*, position the U part of the tool at the bottom of them, and push up between the layers of fabric to cut the stitches. You'll need to hold the fabric taut while you do this, and there's a danger of cutting the fabric instead of the stitches (hence the "proper" but tedious instructions).

> **Comments:**
> **username_4**: As a kid, I remember seeing Mum work on a blouse with one of these, and somehow associated this tool with the term "bodice ripper".   Decades later that lead to much-hilarity at my expense.  

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