Safety eyes

I have a question for all you animal crocheters and knitters out there:

Can anyone recommend some really good safety eyes? And if so, where can I get them? So far, I’ve been pretty disappointed with the eyes I’ve ordered—with most of them, I can’t get the safety rings over the eye stems. Or am I doing something wrong?

Best wishes,
Steffi

Hi Steffi,
if you could get the eyes on that easily, they’d be junk.

Use rivet pliers to fasten them - then they’ll stay rock-solid in place and it works really well.

Best regards, Sabine

Dear Sabine,
thanks for your reply! I don’t have rivet pliers, but I managed with a metal washer. However, the eyes are so ugly (dull) that I’m going to keep looking for prettier ones.
Does anyone have a tip?
Best regards, Steffi

Hi Steffi,

Unfortunately, the all-black ones are always matte. If you want to make them shine, just apply clear varnish after attaching them :-)

You can get colored ones on Amazon, Dawanda, or Buttinette—it depends on how many you want—I’d recommend buying in bulk on Amazon.

Best regards, Sabine 

Ah! The idea with the clear varnish is great! I often glue half pearls onto my animals (they shine beautifully), or I sew beads on. Then I’ll experiment a little!
Thanks so much!
Yours, Steffi

Oh, the pull-through half beads also have a nice shine.

Take a look, these are the ones I mean:
https://basteln-at.buttinette.com/shop/a/kunststoff-augen-5-6-mm-30er-pack-83961

I have them in different sizes because I really enjoy working with them. You can shape the face so nicely with them.

Awesome! Thanks! I think I’ll order those tomorrow!

On the narrower side of the backing washer (the part that goes on the back), you can carefully cut a cross into it with a sharp knife up to about the first groove. After that, they go on perfectly, and so far they haven’t come off again for me either.

Hi brunobanani,

I’d avoid that.
I once had safety eyes with a very soft clasp—they come undone over time

You can also (carefully) heat the fasteners over a candle flame using a pair of pliers and quickly press the softened material together. It’ll just barely fit over the stem and hardens right away, so it can’t slip off anymore. I’ve done this several times, and it holds like a rock.

Thanks for the tips! I’d already read about the heating method. I’ll definitely try that with the eyes I already have :-)

I ordered a set of safety eyes from Amazon: https://goo.gl/FjyX3c
They fasten easily with the included backs, and I think they have a nice shine :)

Dear Sonja, thanks for the tip. I’d already been eyeing that box, but the low price made me suspicious. Maybe I’ll order them after all :-)
Steffi

@Steffi,

don’t be skeptical—just go ahead and order them! I don’t remember exactly, but about 2.5 years ago I bought 250 pairs of black safety eyes for a bargain price of about 8,-....they’re rock-solid...

I used to buy safety eyes at the craft store—for a whopping €1.99 a pair... And they aren’t a bit better than the XXL pack for €10! ;)

You guys are great :-))))))

@Steffi,

since I’ve spent ages searching high and low, I’m happy to help out with things like this :-)

Sometimes I feel like finding the right materials takes more time than actually crocheting^^

Hi :)

I didn’t use any safety eyes at all for a long time and always embroidered/glued/... everything on instead (I don’t have kids, so that’s okay ;)), and when I finally decided to buy some, I searched high and low for them. 

At the local craft store, which was about to close down, they had exactly 1 single safety eye left... Of course, you can do a lot with that ;)
At the big drugstore with a large toy and craft section, the salespeople had no idea what I was talking about... They only had those stick-on googly eyes. I find those creepy.

Then I ordered some from Rayher online just to test them out. 10 pieces for just under €2.50. They go on super easily and, in my experience, hold rock solid. 

After that, I got hooked and ordered a pack of 265, made in China, for an unbeatable €5.55. You can definitely tell the difference in quality, of course. They’re much harder to put on, so you have to use a few tricks. 
But I have to say: I’d order them again. It’s great to have that kind of selection at home :) 

Yeah, I have those Chinese safety eyes too... but with a pair of rivet pliers, they go on great and hold like a champ...

As for the selection: my family can’t help but smile at all the little things rolling around my place :-) And strangely enough, things still keep going missing. But I’ve learned my lesson: now I only order in larger quantities—better safe than sorry.

I actually don’t like safety eyes at all. For my little finger puppets, the safety discs are often too big and end up changing the shape of the face. And I also think safety eyes give the face such a uniform expression. With embroidery, you can make the expression much more individual—even if it sometimes turns out completely different from what you had in mind ;-)