You’re staring at a sheep. It’s got wool. You need that wool for a bed because the sun is going down and the phantoms in Minecraft are genuinely the worst thing Mojang ever added. But if you kill the sheep, you get maybe one block of wool. If you’re lucky. It's a waste. Honestly, it's a rookie move. What you actually need is a pair of shears.
Knowing how to make a shear in minecraft is basically Day 1 stuff, but there’s a weird amount of nuance to using them right. Most players just craft them and click away, but you can actually use them to decorate your base with leaves or even "shave" a Mooshroom if you're feeling chaotic.
Let’s get the recipe out of the way first. It is dead simple.
The Recipe: How to Make a Shear in Minecraft
To get this done, you need exactly two iron ingots. That’s it. No sticks, no wood, no fancy crafting components.
You take those two iron ingots and open your crafting table. You place one ingot in the center slot (the very middle of the 3x3 grid) and one ingot in the bottom-left slot. Or, you can put one in the top-right and one in the middle. Basically, they just need to be diagonal from each other. If you’re playing on Bedrock Edition or the latest Java snapshots, you can just click the recipe book icon, but knowing the diagonal placement is a bit of "old school" knowledge that still comes in handy when you're rushing.
Iron isn't hard to find. Just head down to Y-level 16 or look for exposed veins in a stony mountain biome. Smelt that raw iron in a furnace, and you’re good to go.
Why Iron is the Only Way
A lot of new players ask if you can make wooden shears or gold shears. You can't. Minecraft is weirdly specific about material tiers for certain tools. While you can make a sword out of literally anything from wood to netherite, shears are strictly an iron-tier item. There are no "diamond shears." If you want them to last longer, you have to use an anvil and an Unbreaking III book. It feels like a missed opportunity for the game, but that's just how the mechanics have stayed for years.
Beyond Sheep: What Shears Actually Do
Most people think shears are just for wool. They're wrong. Well, they're partially right, but they're missing out on the best building blocks in the game.
If you use shears on leaf blocks, the leaves actually drop as an item. Normally, if you punch a tree, the leaves just disappear or drop a sapling. But with shears? You get the block. This is how pro builders make those lush, overgrown gardens or custom trees. It’s the only way to move nature without using a Silk Touch enchantment on a heavy tool.
Here is a quick list of things you can do with shears that aren't just haircutting:
- Cobwebs: If you're exploring a Mineshaft and get stuck in webs, use shears. It breaks them instantly and lets you keep the web. This is huge for base defense or making "spooky" decorations.
- Tripwire: You can cut tripwire string without triggering the TNT or arrow trap it's attached to. It’s the ultimate rogue tool.
- Pumpkins: You can't just craft a Jack o' Lantern. You have to place the pumpkin down and use shears on it to carve the face.
- Beehives: If you want honeycombs without destroying the nest, you shear the hive when it's full. Just... maybe have a campfire underneath it first unless you enjoy being chased by a swarm of pixelated bees.
The Mooshroom Secret
This is one of those things that feels like a glitch but is actually a feature. If you find a rare Mushroom Island and see those red cows (Mooshrooms), you can shear them. It turns them back into a regular cow and drops five red mushrooms. It’s a bit sad to see them lose their fungal flair, but if you're starving and need stew ingredients, it works.
Durability and Why It Matters
Shears have 238 uses. That sounds like a lot, but if you’re clearing a jungle for a build, you will burn through them in about three minutes.
Every time you "break" a block with them—like a leaf or a seagrass—it consumes one durability point. However, if you use them to hit a mob (please don't, they do less damage than your fist), it takes two points.
One thing most players forget: Efficiency. You can actually enchant shears. If you put Efficiency V on a pair of shears, you can clear leaves faster than the game can even render the breaking animation. It’s incredibly satisfying. You can also put Mending on them, though honestly, iron is so cheap that it's usually better to just craft a new pair than to waste an expensive Mending book.
Common Mistakes When Crafting Shears
The biggest mistake is honestly just the placement. People try to put them side-by-side. It won't work. The crafting logic in Minecraft usually follows the shape of the item, and since shears are "hinged," the diagonal layout represents that.
Another thing? People forget you can find them for free. You don't always have to know how to make a shear in minecraft if you’re a good looter. They show up in:
🔗 Read more: Magic Mirror CoC: Why Your Archer Queen Is Suddenly Triple The Trouble
- Shepherd’s houses in villages.
- Stronghold storerooms.
- Shipwreck chests.
If you find a Shepherd villager, you can even trade for them, but they’ll usually charge you an emerald. Just mine the iron. It’s faster.
Handling Seagrass and Kelp
If you’re trying to build an aquarium, shears are your best friend. You can't pick up seagrass by hand. If you try, it just breaks into nothing. You have to "shear" it underwater. This also applies to ferns and tall grass in the plains biomes. If you want that "wild" look for your front yard, you need the shears to transplant the tall grass.
Essential Next Steps for Your Survival World
Now that you’ve got your shears, don't just stop at sheep. Go to a nearby forest and gather two stacks of leaf blocks. Use them to hide the lighting (torches or glowstone) around your base. It makes everything look 10x more professional immediately.
If you're planning on a large-scale wool farm, your next move should be setting up an automated shearing station. You can place shears inside a Dispenser. When a sheep grows its wool back, the Dispenser triggers, shears the sheep automatically, and a hopper underneath picks up the wool. It’s the best way to get infinite carpet and beds without having to manually click a thousand times.
Go find some iron, get that diagonal pattern down, and stop killing your sheep for their wool. It’s inefficient and, frankly, the sheep deserve better. Keep those shears in your hotbar next to your silk touch pickaxe; they're more useful than you think.