Eight Bruised Thimbles for Sale

My current passion, saving well-used and well-loved thimbles in honor of the stitchers who came before us. Think of all the history stored in each one of these tiny tools.

Of course we will never know, but what a lovely thought to imagine.

Shipping to be added: $4.00

Shipping to be added: $4.00

My romance with bruised thimbles began by accident when I bought one online. The photo was not clear and I made the mistake of not writing to the dealer to ask about its condition. When it arrived, the poor little thing was indeed in bad condition: it was out of round, with many needle scratches and a myriad of small holes along one side.

It was so small and pretty that I began to wonder on whose finger it had fit and who had used it diligently enough for all those scratches and tiny holes. If it had been a thimble that had belonged to a beloved grandmother or great aunt, I would have treasured it.

But it was not. It had belonged to someone I didn’t know. Was its anonymity a reason to case it aside? It had belonged to some needlewoman diligent enough to use it for what had to be many years and I began to think of the phrase ‘Anonymous was a Woman.’

The thimble led to a new collection of little brusied thimbles long treasured by the needlewomen who proceeded me in their devotion to their needles. The more I thought about it, the more I was drawn to the idea of collecting them.

These little bruised thimbles also have the advantage of a relatively low cost. The collector world prizes perfection and as a result these little bruised thimbles cost sometimes less than half the price of their perfect sisters, and the romance and history are still there.

The Story of My Romance with Bruised Thimbles

On Right: my own collection of brusied thimbles.

If you look carefully, you will identify some of the imperfections.