Hand Work - Then and Now

On a recent trip to The Voortrekker Monument, I was struck by the hand work of the trekkers.  Stuff had to be made by hand, because there was nowhere to buy anything. 
I have enjoyed tracing some links from a couple of centuries ago right through to today:

Here are some Voortrekker Artifacts and some up-to-date versions:

Vintage Voortrekker Tree-of-Life Cross-Stitch / Februrary 2013 Visi Mag Cross-Stitch Cover Entry

Voortrekker Knitted and Beaded Tobacco Bag/ African Expressions Yarn Cosmetic Bag -   

 

Intricately Carved Voortrekker Soap / Beautifully Decorated Rondavel Soap

I have some questions relating to this beautiful display of handwork in a cabinet in the museum.  Why is the one blade of this pair of scissors made square?  Could it be for cutting delicate fabric - no sharp point to damage a delicate weave? 

See the embroidery transfer in the right hand corner?  I wonder if charcoal was used to prick and pounce the patterns? [Read Mary Corbett's interesting article on Pricking and Pouncing]