We begin the twenty-ninth chapter of Maseches Keilim, Mishnah 1, which opens with the words "nimei hasadin". This chapter deals with the handles of garments and the handles of vessels.
The simplest example of a handle of a vessel is the handle of a pot: a person grasps the handle and places the pot on the fire. The question is to what extent the handle is considered part of the pot, so that if the pot is tamei, the handle is tamei as well; and whether there is a point far enough from the pot that that portion of the handle does not receive tumah on account of its attachment to it. This chapter deals with situations of this kind, except that it begins not with vessels but with various articles of clothing.
"Nimei hasadin vehasudarin vehatartin vehapalyon shel rosh - shesh etzba'os":
"Nimei hasadin" - the threads that protrude from a sheet. When the material is woven, the warp threads (the vertical threads) protrude at the edge of the sheet, and they are deliberately left that way because it is considered attractive - a sheet with small fringes coming out of it.
"Vehasudarin" - a type of head covering, from which threads, ribbons and strips of cloth also extend.
"Vehatartin" - a type of hat that has cords or threads protruding from its main body, from the cap itself.
"Vehapalyon shel rosh" - this too is a type of head covering that women wear on their heads.
For all of these garments the measure is six fingerbreadths, that is, six times the width of a finger (and approximately, the width of a finger is about an inch). As long as the threads extend up to this measure, they are considered connected to the garment, and if the garment is tamei they are tamei as well. But if they extend beyond six fingerbreadths, the portion beyond that measure is not considered connected to the sheet, the head covering or the hat, and if the garment became tamei, the threads beyond six fingerbreadths are not tamei.
"Shel afkarsin - eser":
An afkarsin is a type of undergarment that is open at the top, and when a person puts it on he ties its upper part and fastens it. For a garment of this kind the measure is ten: the threads that extend from it are considered connected to the garment itself and are tamei along with it, up to ten fingerbreadths.
"Nimei sagos veharadid vehechaluk vehatalis - shalosh etzba'os":
"Sagos" - a type of coat made of very thick wool.
"Haradid" - a shawl that women wear.
"Hechaluk" - a type of tunic.
"Hatalis" - a tallis.
The threads protruding from these items are considered connected only up to three fingerbreadths.
"Nimei kipah shel zekeinah ugmudin shel arviyin vechulchin ufunda uma'apores ufargod - kol shehen":
"Kipah shel zekeinah" - the hat that older women wear.
"Gmudin shel arviyin" - a shawl-like item that the Arabs would wear during the cold season.
"Chulchin" - an article of clothing made of woven long goat hair.
"Funda" - a hollow belt containing a small pocket in which money can be placed.
"Ma'apores" - a type of turban that is wrapped around the head.
"Pargod" - a curtain of some sort. And some say that this is an outer cloak worn over one's clothing and elaborately embroidered.
In all of these items the threads are "kol shehen" - whatever length they protrude beyond the edge of the garment, they are considered attached, and if the item itself is tamei, the threads protruding from it are tamei as well, even if they extend ten fingerbreadths or twenty fingerbreadths from the body of the garment.
To summarize: The Mishnah established four measurements for threads protruding from garments: six fingerbreadths for a sheet, for scarves, for tartin and for a head wrap; ten for an apron; three fingerbreadths for a coarse woolen cloak, for a shawl, for a tunic and for a tallis; and any amount at all for an old woman's cap, for the gumdin of the Arabs, for kulkin, for a money belt, for a wrap and for a curtain.
With this we have begun the twenty-ninth chapter and completed its first Mishnah.