Hold the paper in front of you and draw the blade from the top of the paper down. If the paper bends with the knife's pressure or doesn't cut cleanly, it's probably time for a thorough sharpening.

After only a minute or two of trying the sharpener, I had the scissors cutting again like they hadn't in years,” says one ...

You should sharpen European-style knives at the same angle the manufacturer put on the edge. Buy the longest steel you can handle easily. You need to listen as you draw the knife across the steel ...

and Japanese knives are around 10–15 degrees. If you’re not sure, try the marker trick: draw a line along the bevel with a marker, then make one sharpening pass at an angle like 15 or 20 degrees.

Person cutting a steak with a sharp steak knife - Helios8/Getty Images The No. 1 answer to that common question of "How do I sharpen steak knives at home?" is carefully. Steak knife blunders are ...