Female Knife Knuts ... Question for U !

Mark W Douglas

Mark W Douglas

Joined
Nov 16, 1998
Messages
1,345
Discussions have been brought forth through other threads which brings this question to mind:

It seems like there are alot of us men folks
whose wives or girlfriends think "all knives look alike"! Do you females have the same responces from your husbands or boyfriends?

Or, is it just the wives and girlfriends that see all knives looking the same? Again, I said alot of us, not all of us!
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Mark
AKTI Member #A000003

P.S. It does work to our advantage sometimes though, if you know what I mean
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" Knife Collectors Are Sharp People! "
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All knives look alike?! choke cough, sputter ("QUICK! Somebody pound on her back! She's choking!") Oh boy....
Although, let's turn the table for a moment..what do some of your wives collect? Beanie Babies, maybe? Personally I can't stand those things, and THEY all start to look alike to me after a while, because I have no interest or knowledge about them... (They multiply overnight, I'm SURE of it!)

I suppose the appreciation you have for knives depends on your degree of knowledge. Same with any collectable, right? I can't tell you how many times I've heard a Beanie Baby collector say "And THIS one is worth a lot cause the tag is bent (or not bent, or something!)" I wonder if they can detect the glazed look in my eyes...

Most people I come in contact with (male or female) think the knives I carry are "cool" and 9 times out of 10 they become "carriers" themselves. My son thinks it's hilarious that his mom, who used to collect only boxes (I have collected various kinds of boxes for years...no, not the cardboard kind) makes a beeline for the knives at every flea market, gun show, or sporting goods store. "Mom, you're weird!"

The more I learn about knives, the more I want to look at them, touch them, HAVE them. It's not disdain that makes some think all knives look alike, it's just lack of interest and knowledge.

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Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder

 
Danelle,

I think you hit the nail right on the head!
Your last paragraph says it all
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Mark
AKTI Member #A000003

P.S. Course my wife collects figurines and I have no interest what so ever in them, but I can see they all look different!
 
Danelle, if Beanie Babies multiplied overnight as wire coathangers ued to do, then there would be no market for them.

On another note, we DC Knife Knuts are trying to put together another lunch, probably in late July. See if you can get Sal to send you to DC then. We would certainly welcome you as you had indicated your regrets the last time. Heck, we'd even welcome him (LOL).

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Walk in the Light,
Hugh
 
A common (but not universal) difference between boys and girls is that boys tend to destroy things they play with. One result is that boys learn a lot about what materials and structures are strong and durable. They learn to appreciate implements that will stand up to their "play" and help them demolish other objects. A well made knife with good steel is a natural for us over grown boy children.

Girls tend to be less destructive. Often they use toys to model adult (non destructive) behaviours. Many have an inclination to admire colorful or decorative objects (like flowers) with no immediate destructive or utilitarian purposes. Their play objects are not destruction tested and are not prized for their ability to withstand pounding with rocks.

There are differences in temperment that directly influence attitudes towards "pretty" verses "rugged" toys. There are also differences in experience with what will function or look right for our use. There are also different reactions to experiences of being cut as a child.

Women and men often see objects differently. As a teen I had a job as a packing clerk. My work bench came with two packers knives and an oil stone. Of course I sharpened the knives so that I could shave with them or they wouldn't "work right". A girl in the order department came down to help me count stock one day. We had to open boxes. I asked for the knife with the "square tip" and she asked me if I meant the one with the "white handle". I had no idea if that was the right one. I identified the knives by their two weird shapes. One looked like a kitchen knife with the blade broken in half leaving a 4" blade with a "square end". The other looked like you had taken a similar knife and ground off the end at a 30-degree angle. When she looked at the knives she distinguished them by handle colors. The square one had a "white handle" while the diagonal bladed one had a "brown handle". She liked the brown handle since it didn't show the dirt as much. I liked the way that the square tip worked on fibre glass reinforced packing tape.

I would think that many women would value colors and interesting shapes in knives above utilitarian designs and BG-42 steel. I remember my mother giving me a chrome plated knife from India when I was young. It was flimsy and impossible to sharpen. What my dad bought me was a Collins machete. Spring steel painted with red corrosion protectant. Ugly, but when I was done with file and whet stone you could shave with it. I used it for years while I hid the useless toy that my mother gave me.

So I try and find kitchen knives that have good looking handles of appealing colors, but I also make sure the handles give a secure grip when wet, the blade is a utilitarian shape, and that it has a good steel that takes a sharp working edge. My wife is the envy of her friends when they notice how well the knives work. They often bring knives to sharpen when they visit these days. I try and direct them away from buying chrome and towards brands that don't make decorative junk.
 
You know, Jeff much of what you say is true. Kind of a 'Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus kind of thing...' Women do go for the "pretty" side of things sometimes. But only someone with some degree of knowledge can look at a Civilian and think its "attractive". Sometimes I carry certain knives and not others because of their looks. Overall however, ergonomics and funtionality win out in the long run 95% of the time.
Danelle

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Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder

 
This is kind of an interesting phenomenon....no, not Danelle's comments, but all the guys out there theorizing why it is men are men, and women are women, and how they know why women are different..... ;-)

I remember a similar discusssion on a hunting group a while back about who was the better hunter, the guy on the list, or his wife! Most refused to answer ;-) What they did do was explain in excruciating detail how their wives didn't appreciate the minutia of hunting, especially the practice shooting, and reloading like they did.
Darn, give the little lady a rifle that shot straight, and they would happily tote it afield, find their game, shoot it, dress it, enjoy the scenery along the way, and never once ask themselves if they would have been better off using a 150 grain Nosler partition instead of the 140 grain ballistic tip, or went with a magnum primer to compensate for the cold weather conditions shooting their 7mm-08.....sacrilage! ;-)

I have a couple of lady friends that love knives, and if you ask them why they carry a particular one, they'll probably say its because the looks pretty, is comfortable, and cut like stink! Who cares what the blade steel is, how much carbon it has, or chromium, or vanadium, as long as its sharp, and stays that way. One carries a 4" blade persian fighter I made her in her purse to use as a utility knife.....odd, nobody hassles her about it.

madpoet
 
I'm tellin' ya. I definitely have a winner with Denna. Sunday, on the way home from the Blade show, she asked me if my Carson 4 has titanium bolsters. This from someone who always said that "they all look alike" I almost drove off an embankment! Last night I caught her trying to replicate Sal's quick Military presentations! She wants my BF Native AND Military. Take your wives to Blade shows and the worm will turn for you (no puns intended)!

Later,
Chris
 
Oh, did I mention that she now wants to join the forums! There goes my secluded happy place!
CPR
 
Chris,

Should I congratulate you on that one? hehehe..
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I'm also trying to get one of my lady friends to join the forums. She's a newbie to the knife scene, but I see some spark of interest in her, and I don't want it to fade right away.
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(Danelle, are you reading this? lol...)

Dan
 
He's NOT talking about me...! Dannyc and I have had some discussions about approaching a lady....(and he won't take my advice and he's gonna be sorry!) lol
I hear ya, Dannyc..make your move!
Danelle

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Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder

 
Perhaps those wives aren't looking at the knives at all. Their disinterest colors their perception. For myself, I'll take "functional elegance" over beauty any day.
 
Thank You Kysa!
I was hoping to see you get in on this soon!
Well, we have some idea now of the perception of knives to some females. (although we need more..more..more women interested in knives...!) Tell us, now guys..what do the women in your lives collect? And what do you think about it? Do they spend as much time and money on their collecting as you do?
Danelle
 
Wife collects figurines, mostly Disney stuff. She also collects MLB Cleveland Indians stuff, too. She doesn't spend nearly as much for her collection as I do.
She is not addicted to her hobby like I am either.

VERY CONSERVATIVE SHE IS!
ME, the opposite. Hey, the saying goes that opposites attract
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Mark
AKTI Member #A000003
 
Interesting observations here. Personally I'm a "function junkie". I like and buy knives for performance, quality, fit in my hand and innovation. Most of my female friends are initially intimidated by knives. They come around once they know how to safely handle and use them. Then they start calling asking "where can I get that one you had in your pocket last weekend?" I agree with Danelle, knowledge and interest go a long, long way. Check out the newest issue of Mademoiselle magazine-women and women's fashion magazines are coming to like pocket knives!

Joyce
 
I'm new to this site...be gentle with me!

I agree with Kysa and Joyce Laituri. In a weird twist, my husband is the one who collects his knives based on how "cool" they look and he carries the same beat up, usually dull knife every day.

Personally, I never thought about knives except as box cutters or in the kitchen until I started working for Spyderco almost 3 years ago. Now I own over 40 knives (not just Spyderco either). But my stipulation is that I won't buy anything I can't use. Unfortunately my "collection" will never be worth much because of all of the dings, scratches, scrapes (all in the name of outdoor fun).

When I go camping, usually I'm the one our friends come to when their not so efficient "camping silverware" won't cut the half charred steaks typical of most of our camping trips. However, I do have select knives that although they have function, they also look nice in less rugged situations. So,I agree with Kysa's statement of owning knives with "elegant functionality". Geez, what a long winded way to say "I agree" ...sorry.

(O.K. I'll admit it, I have a blue Ladybug on my keychain because I like the color....there I said it.)

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We learn from jerks not to be jerks..they make the best teachers
 
Joyce:

Could you please elaborate? I'm curious to know (in a nutshell) what Mademoiselle magazine is saying about knives.

I've been expecting to see a surge in pocket knife popularity among women. Women seem to drive their share of sport utility vehicles nowadays, right? I believe the SUV mindset and the pocket knife mindset are different manifestations of the same thing.
Also, traditionally male activities such as boxing and cigar smoking have become fashionable among women. It seems like the contemporary woman is ready to start buying lots and lots of knives. Get ready, Spyderco and Benchmade: you guys are gonna get a lot of this business, since the fashionability factor is going to make the high quality stuff "do it" for hip women. Carrying knives (men as well as women) is about utility, but it's also about making a statement. The statement is: "I'm ready for anything." This message should appeal to everyone: conservatives, feminists, soccer moms, survivalists, you name it.

David Rock
 
I have to addmit there are a lot of ladys at work that like the all business looking knives. When I have one with me they all say show such and such that knife. =) They still don't seem to be carrying them though. Hmm

Regards,

Tom Carey
 
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