Measure twice and cut once

I almost forgot about following up on the two very important tools to have in our business.  The grid paper are totally cool.  I use alot of these.  I tried once to do a family get together and use them as place mats, but, that didn't work so well. (I believe one comments was something like "aw come on! Another Stampin' Up! thing! Can't we just have one thing without Stampin' Up!?"  Duhhhhhh..... no!  Because, this is what I am about. 

Let's get started.  If you happen to have a Stampin' Up! grid sheet close at hand, this would be a good time to place it in front of you and look at it close up.  We are going to be speaking in terms of inches.

     It's pretty much like a ruler.  In the lower left
       hand corner are little lines (aka marks).  You
       will notice that there are numbers along the
       side and across the bottom.  These numbers
        are referred to as whole numbers.
        If you  will  take a  piece of cardstock
        (5- 1/2"  x 4-1/4" - which
       is a regular sized greeting card), and place it in
       the lower left hand corner of the grid sheet.
       See how it lines up on the side and across the
       bottom?  That is good.  You will look at the
       numbers on the ruler and see that it matches
       the size of the regular greeting card.   Very
       good.  We are still moving forward.
In between the whole numbers, there are marks. Some rulers can have as many as 64 marks and others have 32, 24, 16, 8, 4, 2.  We will use the 16, 8, 4, and 2 marks.  Once again, in the lower left hand corner of the sheet, across the bottom looking toward the right (to the number 1) - see the little marks - some are shorter than others. Well, there is a reason for this.  The longest mark tells us that it is the halfway point between 0 and the number 1 - so, there are two halves which would be 1/2". I know you are getting to be impressed about now.

Next, divide the point between 0" to 1" into fourths and if you will count from the first mark (which is 0") 4 marks over, you will get 2/4" and it converts to 1/4". See how easy it is.  Count 4 more marks over and you will get 4/8" and what is amazing about this - it converts to 1/2" (which is the halfway mark between 0" and 1" ). Tada!  Count 4 more marks and you will 6/8" and it converts to 3/4".  Because 4/4" = 1".
Yep! We are almost done with measuring. Cutting is on your own once we look at the paper cutter.

This harder to see; however, look at both pictures and you will get the idea.  We are now going to split the marks into eighths. There are 8 marks between 0" and 1".  Count from 0" - 2 marks over and you will get 1/8" . Count two more marks which is 1/4"; count 2 more marks and you will 3/8"; count two more marks and you will get 4/8" which converts to 1/2". Amazing, isn't it. Because we are counting by 8s, half of 8 is 4 and that equals 4/8" reduced to 1/2" (halfway mark between 0" and 1".  On the other side of the 1/2" is two more marks over and that is 5/8". Count two more marks over and you will get 6/8" which converts to 3/4" and then two marks over is 7/8".  See?

I have circled all of the marks because these represent the sixteenths of an inch.  Each one is 1/16" and when you go in succession as in the following:   1/16", 2/16" (or 1/8"); 3/16"; 4/16" (or 1/4"); 5/16"; 6/16"; 7/16"; 8/16" (or 1/2"); 9/16"; 10/16" (or 5/8"); 11/16"; 12/16" (or 3/4"); 13/16"; 14/16" (or 7/8"); and 15/16".
 Then, you have 16/16" = 1"

You have completed the grid sheet measuring tutorial.  It gets easier. Don't be afraid of measuring and using the grid sheet.  If you need help, just let me know.  Was this too confusing?  There is just alot of explaining to do.  These measurements coincide with the baking measurements only in a different form.   If you leave a comment letting me know you got it all.  You get 5 oinks (the highest oinks possible).  Because there are 5 little piggies (one went to market; one piggie stayed home; one little piggie had roast beef; one little piggie had none; and one little piggie went wee, wee, wee all the way home).

Watch for the next tutorial on our paper cutter.  Thanks for stopping by and happy pigtrails to you, pinkpigy@aol.com
http://www.janerappleyea.stampinup.net/