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I have the same problem!! My demonstrator and I joke about it all the time. I'm a smart woman and yet I can't seem to cut paper. Go figure!
It's getting easier though as time goes on. I seem to be getting the hang of it. However, I did want to know who has purchased the new paper cutter from SU and if they found the measurement guides on it helpful. I have the old paper cutter and I have it all marked up w/ measurement lines.
I too like everything to be straight and if not, it makes me crazy. I use CM's personal trimmer for smaller pieces and the new 12" straight trimmer for cutting my cardstock for cards and larger pieces. Just my 2 cents!
I have the same problem!! My demonstrator and I joke about it all the time. I'm a smart woman and yet I can't seem to cut paper. Go figure!
It's getting easier though as time goes on. I seem to be getting the hang of it. However, I did want to know who has purchased the new paper cutter from SU and if they found the measurement guides on it helpful. I have the old paper cutter and I have it all marked up w/ measurement lines.
I like how you same "I'm a smart woman and yet I can't seem to cut paper" That is so me. I mean I can manage an accounting department for a huge company-----but when it comes to measuring/cutting I'm like a child.
Yes cutting paper is very frustrating. I am a demo and if I am cutting a lot of paper I have to concentrate on what I am doing.
I have looked at the new cutter but I do not have it. I am sure anything with guide lines would make things a lot easier.
I have the fiskars rotary cutter and the personal trimmer (81/2" I hate it!)
Anything that makes your craft easy and fun is worth the money IMO.
I think I will purchase the new one....but I have been looking a a guilatine (sp) one so I am up in the air!!
I know this probably not help you much sorry
I tried the Fiskars guiotine (spelling). What a disaster! It shredded my paper instead of cutting it. I just invested in the expensive Carl Cutter from Everarts.com. It is the best and worth every penny! Staples carries it too.
the new 12 inch Fiskars helps a lot I think - It has the lines for the different sizes of paper. I will often just check my placement with a piece of the original to make sure it is about the right size prior to cutting as well.
Too bad SU does not have the matt pads/strips of pre cut paper.
__________________ Kyloe
The lesson from Charlie Brown: The people who make a difference in your life are not the ones with the most credentials, the most money, or the most awards. They are the ones that care.
However, I did want to know who has purchased the new paper cutter from SU and if they found the measurement guides on it helpful. I have the old paper cutter and I have it all marked up w/ measurement lines.
There was a thread a week or so ago about how the SU cardstock isn't always cut straight! So you could be measuring your little self silly and it still isn't going to be quite right because you started with an imperfect rectangle. Once I realized that, I loosened up a little and tried not to worry about it.
I still have trouble getting the layers stuck on perfectly with exactly the same amount of border on all sides!
baweinstein:
Can you give me the product # on the carl cutter you bought at staples.
Also does it cut multiple sheets.
I am in Canada and would like to see if they have it here.
Thanks
This is in regards to measuring. I have struggled with this too, I can be a bit of a perfectionist. What I did was make a "pretend" card out of printer paper (no need for it to be nice) and then I measured out the typical pieces I use to mat. I wrote down their dimensions on the pretend card with the outlines of where they would fall. I especially use it when I block the entire front of the card in rectangles or squares and then mount another color on top with the stamped image. I have a couple of pretend cards hanging on my bulletin board in front of my stamping area so I can find them. I used to cut out pieces (as templates themselves) with the size marked on it, but I tended to lose them and had to start all over again.
I have used a lot of different cutting systems and use my Fiscars with the rolling wheel the most. My paper started looking really fuzzy at the cut site lately and after talking to some friends they reminded me to turn the plastic block strip under the cutter to a clean side. Duh. Now it's as good as new. I also use the CM trimmer for smaller pieces. It will help make sure the pieces are straight.
I'm not too good at lining things up either, although I'm getting better. I wish my cutter had centimeters on both sides, though: it'd make things so much easier! I'm always scratching my head trying to figure out how to divide inches... I eventually get there, but it does take me a while! And there's the occasional mat that doesn't fit at all and has me wondering where I went wrong with my calculations... :oops:
I used to have difficulty cutting layers for my cards also, until a dear friend taught me the secret. For the stamped image I alway measure the outside of the wooden block of the rubber stamp and cut my paper to that size. Each layer I add to that would be a 1/4" larger etc. If the stamp image is 2" x 2" then the next layer is 2 1/4" x 2 1/4" and the next layer would be 2 1/2" x 2 1/2" and so on. If your card size is 5 1/2" x 4 1/4" and you want a layer on top of that just drop a 1/4" from the size to
5 1/4" x 4". This always gives you a nice 1/8" border all the way around.
I also have the SU cutter and find it extremely easy to use with all the measurements. HTH
I got a Fiskaers rotary cutter for my Bday from my Dh and I love it. My problem is that SU! 12x12 paper is not a true 12x12. So I have wasted alot of it trying to cut 6x6's. I'm now not wasting the paper i cut for cards, with the cutter because I get a Straight cut now instead of the wobble cut with my old Friskar cutter. Just my thoughts.
Gin
I hardly ever talk on here so I hope that I'm doing this correctly. A friend introduced me to the Cutterpede paper cutter made by EK Success. I really love it . It takes a bit to get used to the measurements but it makes good clean accurate cuts all the way up to 12x12 paper. It is a rotary style blade with a lift style guide that sort of locks in place holding the paper underneath so that it does not move. You can by a scoring blade and a perforating blade as well. Really cool.
I have a large paper cutter with the measurements right on there. Its great. I bought it at office max for $60 or so. I could not live without it. You can cut multiple sheets at a time and has a self sharpening blade.
Another thing i use is Perfect Layers which I purchased at QVC its great. It was pretty reasonable like $25 ? Its good for matting or layering
I cut my paper in 4ths for layers, and this has been the easiest way for me to do it.
Start with an 8 1/2 x 11 (standard cs size)
cut in half at the 5 1/2 and 4 1/4-this is the size of 1 cardfront.
Next layer down I trim 1/2 inch off the sheet to start so it is 8 x 10 1/2"
Cut into fourths by cutting at the 4" mark and he 5 1/4" mark
the 1/2" pieces I toss
Next layer down I trim 1" off to start so the piece id 7 1/2" x 10"
Cut into fourths by cutting at the 3 3/4" spot and the 5" spot.
I almost always cut a full sheet down to get the layers, i have found it easier to cut the big sheet down and then cut into fourths, the extras I put back in teh folder I have to use another time.
To get your paper cut unto sixths:
cut the 8 1/2" side in half so it is 4 1/2"
the 11" side I cut into thirds, basically 3 and 3/4" plus a touch more This will give you 6 pieces- a good size for layering for big gift tags
I hijacked my Fiskars rotary cutter and self healing mat (and rulers) from my quilting supplies and have no regrets! I use this to cut larger paper into card-sized pieces, and then use my CM guillotine-style cutter for more detailed cutting.
That is on purpose-it is 11 7/8"
When I measure to cut it for brag books I take it to the 6" mark and slide at back just a touch. This hs helped my bragbooks b/c I like add pop up layers/embellishments and they fit right in the sleeve this way without bending the corners.
To cut a 12x12 piece of cs to get 4 square cards that measure 4x4" each:
cut a 4x12" strip horizontally across.
The piece left is 8" high and 12" long.
Along the 12" side cut vertically up every 4"-that will give you 3 cards that measure 4"x8".
The original 4" strip from the top-cut it at the 8" mark and then you have a 4x4 square left over for layering.
Fold the 4x8" card in half to use.
I like the square cards for one big image (the ones from Summer by the Sea fit just right on there) of for a small center image, like Mini Mates or Good times. This type of square card also fits in a regular SU envelope (there is just a little extra room) so no extra postage. If you look at Target card section there are lots of cute little cards you can easily recreate with SU and make them "yours"
__________________ I want people to be afraid of how much they love me-M. Scott
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I bought a big Fiskar's trimmer from Michael's (w/my 40% coupon of course). It is great, cuts really smoothly & I can cut up to 5 or 6 sheets of SU cardstock at a time (lots more of the thinner stuff from Michael's, but I don't use that much anymore).
It is a rotary type cutter & there are lots of different blades you can get for it....scoring, antique, perforating, etc. I love it.
I use my CM personal trimmer for the smaller stuff.
__________________ Jeanne I'm in my own little world, but they all know me here.
I have just realized lately because of doing the brag books that the SU paper is not 12x12..........what is up with that?
hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
The reason for this is that once you have all your pictures & embellishments on the page, it won't fit in the page protector. The CS is 11 7/8 x 11 7/8", so measure & cut at 5 15/16" & you have identical sizes.
As far as the measuring goes, I guess I'm just a math geek at heart. I write down where to cut pieces when I'm cutting lots of CS. Say I have a piece for part of a card that's 2 x 3". I will write down 2.4.6.8 & under that 3.6.9. That means I will cut 1/2" off the 8 1/2" side & 2" off the 11" side. I will then get 12 identical pieces out of one piece of CS. By writing it down, I've really cut down on the number of mistakes I make in adding fractions........who knew that would come in handy?
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Britta, you have such great hints & tips. I love the 4 cards from the 12x12...You know, I am not a stupid person, but sometimes I stick that paper in there to cut it & it ends up the wrong way....wonder how that happens
Thanks for all you tips. You are great!!
__________________ Jeanne I'm in my own little world, but they all know me here.
I sat down and wrote all the measurements from the quarter card size card stock on down. Then I brought the measurements down by quarter inch each way. Well I did this down to quite a small size. Then I took my little chart and taped it to my trimmer. It saves a lot of thinking when you are tired or really in a hurry
Also, make sure that your blades are sharp. I think that is one thing I really neglect. You will usually get a straight cut if they are sharp!
Being a math teacher and loving geometry, I'm very anal about these things. I have several quilting rulers that I use when I'm stamping or scrapping. My friends laugh at me.
Thankyou Britta and Suzanne the 12x12 thing was really bugging me.
It is nice to know the real reason for this.
I kept thinking to myself how much money are they saving by not giving us the full sheet!! It can't be that much
I used to have difficulty cutting layers for my cards also, until a dear friend taught me the secret. For the stamped image I alway measure the outside of the wooden block of the rubber stamp and cut my paper to that size. Each layer I add to that would be a 1/4" larger etc. If the stamp image is 2" x 2" then the next layer is 2 1/4" x 2 1/4" and the next layer would be 2 1/2" x 2 1/2" and so on. If your card size is 5 1/2" x 4 1/4" and you want a layer on top of that just drop a 1/4" from the size to
5 1/4" x 4". This always gives you a nice 1/8" border all the way around.
I also have the SU cutter and find it extremely easy to use with all the measurements. HTH
Stampin'Hugs
Charlee
this is how i do it, except I only cut mine 1/8 of an inch bigger all the way around. what can i say, I like skinny borders.
__________________ I'm a loser ~ 19.2 pounds gone...lots more to go!
Measuring/Cutting cardstock for projects
). The rest of it is identical to the one in the book. I think it works pretty good, I am glad I found it for that cheap, instead of paying $24.95 for it plus shipping. The measurements are nice to have on there too, I have my old one, but I like this one better 
