Day 320

September 19, 2020

Safety pins, not a day goes by that I don’t use one. This bowl contains the safety pins I find in my pockets at the end of a work day. Every few months I empty the bowl into a Ziplock bag and take them back because no one needs a gross of safety pins at home. At work they are indispensable. They are used for everything. From pinning alterations during a fitting, to pinning two sleeves to hold a section of clothes together, to slicing packages open. They really are the tool we use the most.

The safety pin was invented in the late 1840’s, by American Walter Hunt, in order to pay a debt to a friend. He sold the patent to W. R. Grace & Company for $400. He paid off his friend and kept the rest to himself. Of course W. R. Grace & Company went on to sell millions worth of safety pins.

Safety pins also serve as a cultural symbol. In the 1970’s they became associated with punk fashion. Though if you asked Johnny Rotten they were used for more practical reasons. He’s been quoted with saying safety pins were used to “keep the arse of your pants falling out”. And I can vouch for many a jean or leather jacket being kept together by safety pins in my time. I couldn’t be bothered to get them repaired so I just pinned it all back together, much to my mother’s dismay. But that was only one aspect of my appearance at the time that mortified my poor mother. We were all teenagers at some point…