I believe that a pair of scissors should stay in the kitchen for only kitchen use. The pair of scissors used to cut tape or paper should not be the same pair to say, cut herbs. (God forbid my Bed, Bath & Beyond coupons should be contaminated by an e.coli strain.) Enter my pair of herb scissors.
I fell in love with this pair, specifically from Williams and Sonoma. The decision was further cemented after spending a good amount of time pulling the leaves off of thyme for a beef marinade.
The way the herb scissors works: notches on the blade act as a stripper, pulling the leaves from the stem. Unfortunately for my thyme plant, the leaves were too tender to effectively pull the leaves off and I was left with some stems still fully intact.
A good idea but not entirely foolproof. Herbs like rosemary are a better match. But I am left with a nifty, rustproof pair of kitchen scissors.
Gratuitous picture of meaty flesh.
As for the marinaded beef, delicious as always and perfect for the Memorial Day weekend BBQ.
Best Beef Marinade
1/4 cup of chopped shallots
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar or cider vinegar
4 teaspoons fresh thyme
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 cracked black pepper
In a small bowl combine shallots, soy sauce, olive oil, vinegar, thyme, garlic and cracked pepper. Pour marinade over beef in a plastic bag set in a shallow dish; seal bag. Marinate in the refrigerator about 30 minutes if your cuts are tender, or for 3 to 24 hours for tougher cuts. Turn bag occasionally. Drain marinade prior to placing on grill.
From the Better Homes and Gardens Grilling Cookbook.
My Burning Kitchen 
I've seen those herb scissors and wondered if they were really worth it. At least it didn't seem to cost as much a regular kitchen shears.
i dig those scissors!!!
Kathi–The scissors are great as scissors alone and there's an added benefit of stripping herbs.Kleopatra–The scissors are good and so was the meat. YUM.
No need to pull off leaves of thyme or use scissors! Just hold the top of the stem with one hand and pinch with the other and pull backward. It falls right off every time.I still want those scissors though. Parsley is incredibly difficult to chop.
Sarah–Duh! Thanks!! I think part of me just thought they were the coolest scissors and convinced myself that I needed them.
Sarah – Have you tried a mezzaluna? I have my eyes on Nigella's (and matching board). They had a $10 one at Ikea, but don't waste your money, all it did was bruise my herbs. The reviews on amazon give thumbs downs to all of the double bladed ones – 2 sharp knifelike instruments that you have to stick your fingers into to clean out = dangerous.
No, but now I need to! But how do you store such a thing…
Sure looks like a cool pair of scissors. I have never seen a pair like those. I will need to get a pair. ThanksJayFree4thofJulyRecipes.comFree 4th of July Recipes and Desserts Found Here
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I bought that exact pair of scissors a while back just because I thought they were cute and I was going through a 'green' phase (the color, not the movement). But I realized quickly that I'll never use them! I chop all my herbs with my chef's knife and find that my fingers work just as well for stripping leaves off stems. Unfortunately the scissors are too small to be much use for anything so they were donated a while back. I think that a good pair of standard kitchen shears is a much better investment as they can be used for so many things!
Jay–I like the scissors but not the herb feature so much. Nicole–I think I'm in my green faze now. You made a good point about the size of the shears: they are too short.