Three thoughts on . . . zippers

 Three thoughts on . . . zippers.

1.  Teeth aren't shaped like teeth.

Despite their name, the teeth of zippers aren't really shaped like teeth. Each one is more like a spoon or a ladle, and they sit, one inside the other, like spoons whose handles alternate left and right.  

It's as though you're making those Matryoshka dolls, those nested Russian dolls, but instead of stacking the different sizes inside each other, they're all the same size and you stack them like a totem pole: each one sitting on,  and fitting into, the head of the one below it.

2.  Knitting with zippers.

A few years ago during Sock Madness, my daughter learned how to add zippers to knitted socks with no sewing involved. The technique is to make loops with yarn in the fabric of the zipper, carefully matching your stitch size (so I guess actually that part is like sewing), . . . so then when you're knitting the socks, you just knit the zippers right in, using the loops. I think that this is so clever, that it almost makes me want to pick up my knitting again.

3.  I love my saved zipper stash.

New zippers can be pricey, but old conference bags and cheapo backpacks often have really decent zippers that are perfectly usable for other good projects.  And the cheapness of the construction means that it's usually really easy to get that zipper out with 5 minutes and a good seam ripper. For some reason, this reminds me about old jokes about the "Yugo" brand cars; you can double the value of the car by filling the gas tank. When it comes to those cheap conference bags, the zipper off of the bag is often worth more than the bag with a zipper still in.