Get a Grip: An Easy Way to Grasp Things (Video)
Jewelry and Coffee with Rena
Video Episode 23
by Rena Klingenberg.
Do you ever have trouble picking up or gripping jewelry tools or components?
Here’s a nifty, cheap solution that’s especially cool if you have carpal tunnel, arthritis, or just find it difficult to grip things:
Transcript of This Video:
Sometimes when we’re making jewelry, we have to pick up things that are slippery, like little cabochons – or things that are hard to grip, like some of our tools.
Gripping these things can be especially hard if you have carpal tunnel, arthritis, or anything else that affects your grip.
But here’s a really simple solution: You can get a roll of rubberized non-skid shelf liner:
You can get it anyplace that you can get kitchen supplies; you can also get it at the hardware store or home improvement stores.
It comes in big rolls, and you can use regular scissors to cut it into any size and shape that you find handy.
(You might want to cut a couple of pieces of it into different sizes and shapes to keep in with your jewelry tools, so that it’s always there whenever you need it, to help you grip or pick things up.)
Here are a couple of examples of ways you can use this:
This is a piece I’ve cut to be a little bit bigger than hand size.
For example, if you have trouble gripping your hammer, or if you get fatigued gripping your hammer, you can temporarily wrap this piece of rubberized shelf liner around your hammer’s handle:
It sticks nicely to the hammer handle, and also to your hand.
Now your hand doesn’t get so fatigued hanging onto the hammer – and at the same time you have a nice, firm grip so you have more control over your hammering.
You can also use it with pliers:
If you take your pliers and put your piece of rubberized shelf liner around the plier handles, you have a nice sticky grip on your plier handles.
Your hand won’t get so fatigued, and it’s really easy to hang onto your pliers.
They won’t be slipping out of your hand, and you have a lot more dexterity with your pliers.
You might also want to have a very small size piece of this shelf liner.
If you’re picking up things like stubborn, slippery little cabochons, sometimes it’s nice to have a piece of it that’s just “pinching size” – so you can just pinch things to pick them up, with a nicely sticky grip thanks to your rubberized shelf liner:
One other way I’ve used this material is not with making jewelry, but with selling it.
I’ve found that it’s a nice to have a piece of rubberized shelf liner to place under each of your displays when you’re doing shows.
It will keep your displays from scooting across the table – for example, when somebody takes a piece of jewelry out of your display to try it on, now they won’t be sending your display sliding all over the table; it will stay in place.
So those are some helpful ways you can use non-skid, rubberized shelf liner when you’re making and selling jewelry.
I would love to hear any solutions you have for getting a better grip on things or keeping things from sliding around.
Thanks so much for joining me today! I’ll see you next time.
The Jewelry Rena’s Wearing
in This Video:
Necklace – Tropical Tranquility choker with brass “Om” pendant; Czech glass, wood, sterling silver clasp. By Rena Klingenberg.
Earrings – Tropical Tranquility earrings with Czech glass beads, brass wire, and 14k gf earwires. By Rena Klingenberg.
