[lace] divide4r pins
I am in need of opinions, please :-) I make divider pins for use in Bobbin lace. Mainly they are brass pins and some of them are silver plated. In the past I have bought piuns in large numbers and used them freely. Yesterday I received a shipment, and this time they are labeled with a warning that the pins contain lead and therefore are not recommended for use by children. So my question... How do you feel about pins with lead in them? Do you only pick up and move the pins by holding to the decorative beds or turnings on them, or do you7 lift and reposition your pins by holding the metal pin itself? I am getting ready to return the pins, but I thought I would ask first! Thank you. Lauren Snyder - To unsubscribe send email to majord...@arachne.com containing the line: unsubscribe lace y...@address.here. For help, write to arachne.modera...@gmail.com. Photo site: http://community.webshots.com/user/arachne2003/albums/most-recent
Re: [lace] divide4r pins
Hi Lauren, Brass consist mainly of copper and zinc. It has a tiny proportion of lead to aid manufacture (1.5 to 2 %). It can leach out slightly, but I don't think you need to worry over much. Many lace-makers, who have been using brass pins all their lives, live and have lived to a ripe old age. But it does re-iterate the fact that one must not put pins in the mouth. Not only do the enzymes of the saliva corrode the pins and can cause verdigris marks on your lace it might lead to ingestion of the metals -besides the danger of actually swallowing a pin-. Normal handling of brass pins ought not to cause problems. However, I tend to prefer stainless steel pins. Not because I worry about the metals, but because stainless steel pins are stronger and less prone to bending They also don't discolour like brass pins. Happy lace making, Joepie, from a very stormy East Sussex. I am in need of opinions, please :-) I make divider pins for use in Bobbin lace. Mainly they are brass pins and some of them are silver plated. In the past I have bought piuns in large numbers and used them freely. Yesterday I received a shipment, and this time they are labeled with a warning that the pins contain lead and therefore are not recommended for use by children. So my question... How do you feel about pins with lead in them? Do you only pick up and move the pins by holding to the decorative beds or turnings on them, or do you7 lift and reposition your pins by holding the metal pin itself? I am getting ready to return the pins, but I thought I would ask first! Thank you. Lauren Snyder - To unsubscribe send email to majord...@arachne.com containing the line: unsubscribe lace y...@address.here. For help, write to arachne.modera...@gmail.com. Photo site: http://community.webshots.com/user/arachne2003/albums/most-recent
Re: [lace] divide4r pins
Hello all, As someone who uses divider pins a lot, I don't want to have anything to do with anything containing lead. If it's a question of the pin part containing lead and not the top, it doesn't matter. You still grab those pins by the wire every now and then, so the less exposure to toxins the better. I hope you can return that product without much hassle... Debora .. In a beautiful, sunny and warm Toronto... and it's Friday! - To unsubscribe send email to majord...@arachne.com containing the line: unsubscribe lace y...@address.here. For help, write to arachne.modera...@gmail.com. Photo site: http://community.webshots.com/user/arachne2003/albums/most-recent
Re: [lace] divide4r pins
Hi Lauren: When I first read your post I thought maybe the pins contained lead because they were poorly made in a third-world factory, but after a quick trip to Wikipedia I see that probably all of our brass pins contain lead. I did not know that! I don't usually worry all that much about lead, but in this case I am concerned because according to the Wiki article ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brass ), even though leaded brass is usually only about 2% lead, the lead tends to migrate to the outside, so the effect in terms of how much lead comes off the brass is much higher than the 2% figure. Worse, since the brass is in pins that we pick up by grasping firmly with our fingers, it looks to me like the chance of us actually ingesting the lead is higher than if the brass article were something we rarely touched. And of course during long hours of lacemaking it's pretty normal to stop for a bite to eat, and while we'd certainly wash our hands after the snack and before touching our lace again, we might not wash our hands before taking that cookie or eating that sandwich. I have been wondering lately, how to clean some old brass pins that I have. Now I'm thinking I'll just throw them out. Adele North Vancouver BC (west coast of Canada) On 2012-06-08, at 9:29 AM, L.Snyder wrote: I am in need of opinions, please :-) I make divider pins for use in Bobbin lace. Mainly they are brass pins and some of them are silver plated. In the past I have bought piuns in large numbers and used them freely. Yesterday I received a shipment, and this time they are labeled with a warning that the pins contain lead and therefore are not recommended for use by children. So my question... How do you feel about pins with lead in them? Do you only pick up and move the pins by holding to the decorative beds or turnings on them, or do you7 lift and reposition your pins by holding the metal pin itself? I am getting ready to return the pins, but I thought I would ask first! Thank you. Lauren Snyder - To unsubscribe send email to majord...@arachne.com containing the line: unsubscribe lace y...@address.here. For help, write to arachne.modera...@gmail.com. Photo site: http://community.webshots.com/user/arachne2003/albums/most-recent
