Hooks & eyes made of blackened wire are available & sold by the set. Directions for securely sewing hooks & eyes are found in The Lady’s Guide to Plain Sewing Book II. These were used to close garments such as men’s coats & to cock hats. They may be used in conjunction with a pair of ties to help keep a women’s cloak shut as well & there is an unusual example from 1738 The Virginia Gazette of a “RUN away . . . a Servant Man . . . he is an Irishman . . . He carried . . . one Half thick Wastecoat, with Hooks and Eyes, instead of Buttons”. In 1774 in The Proceedings of the Old Bailey, London during the trial of some highwaymen a witness stated, “I am a taylor: I made this coat for the prosecutor; I finished it on the 9th of April; I am sure it is the same; I made it myself; I know my own work perfectly well; the hooks and eyes are taken out, here are the marks where they were.” We also have hook & eye tape in white & black.
