lose one's touch

No longer be able to do or handle something skillfully. For example, I used to make beautiful cakes but I seem to have lost my touch, or Dad had a real knack for letting someone down gently, but he's lost his touch. This expression alludes to the older sense of touch as a musician's skill on an instrument or an artist's skill in using a brush or chisel. [First half of 1900s] Also see lose touch.