It is hardly possible in our time to find a house in which this ingenious device would not exist. It's hard to believe, but once a small safety pin was able to change the world. And we say this without any exaggeration. Today this unique item is used not only for its intended purpose, but also as a stylish accessory.
What does a safety pin look like?
To avoid confusion and uncertainty, we immediately describe its appearance. Of course, it is difficult to assume that someone has not seen her yet, but who knows ... So, the safety pin has the shape of a metal needle, fastened with a rod and closed with a special cap. This simple item is intended for fastening or stabbing parts of clothing, or pieces of fabric.
History of invention
But did you know that only in Russia the name "safety pin" has taken root? In all other countries, it is called a safety pin. It is curious that various devices, outwardly very similar to the pin familiar to us, were used by the peoples of the Black Sea even three thousand years ago. Also among the safety pin predecessors are the ancient Roman brooch, which is a metal clasp that was worn as a decoration. Nevertheless, in its usual modern form, a safety pin was born thanks to the American engineer Walter Hunt. It happened in the summer of 1849.
Here, perhaps, the reader will be surprised: how did it happen that the inventor is American, and the pin is called English? Like many other inventions, this item was born by chance. Once an American Walter Hunt owed his friend $ 15. It was tight with money, and trying to find a way to repay the debt, he nervously twisted a piece of wire that fell into his hands. It took about three hours, and in the hands of Hunt turned out to be a semblance of the current English pin. Walter suddenly realized that if you attach a “lock” to the most popular metal product in the form of a loop with a needle, in which you can hide the sharp end, then in this case the holder of the pin can be sure that he will not lose it. Seeing this invention, the lender not only forgave Hunt the debt, but also paid $ 400 for the assignment of the right to obtain a patent.
This comrade was none other than Charles Rowley, a British subject. The discerning Englishman did not really believe that a patent in the States in the 19th century would be able to protect his rights, and therefore decided to register it in his homeland. And so the name was born for the new item - "safety pin", although it would be fair to call it "American".
Stylish accessory
While superstitious people wear this item exclusively “from the evil eye”, representatives of various subcultures use it as a fashionable decoration. An English pin with a spiral may be part of a badge or, for example, a brooch. The informals began to use the safety pin most actively in this role after the mid-twentieth century, and everything began, as legend has it, with Richard Hell, who at that time played the lead role in the band Richard Hell & The Voidoids. At first they were simply pinned to clothes and specially torn jeans were fastened with their help . But some time passed and the safety pin came to the taste of rebel designers such as Vivienne Westwood, John Richmond and Alexander McQueen, and appeared on the catwalk.