Cutting paper with a scalpel 2

Yesterday we looked at choosing a craft knife and replacing blades.
Now for rulers, measuring and the final cut!

If you have to join two dots and your dots are fat little blobs done with a blunt pencil, look at how inaccurate it can be. The line joining them could go off in a completely different direction!

Your pencil should be so sharp that it could prick your finger. A .35 clutch pencil is good too.

Choosing a ruler: 

• You need a metal ruler because if it's plastic the knife will notch it.
• Choose one with etched, not drawn increments.
• The increments (for my way of measuring) should start at the very edge of the ruler - you'll see why.
• Go metric (pleeeese!)
• Stick masking tape on the back of the ruler to make it non-slip.
• Ideally you need a longer ruler as well, because its hard to cut well if you are sliding your ruler along the knife, especially when you are cutting board. My 60cm one is very useful.

Measure accurately:

• If you want to measure 2.5cm, put the ruler on the paper so that the 2.5cm mark is on the edge of the paper (the other way round compared to usual). This way you don't have to squint to get the pencil dot at the correct mm mark. 
• Do a tiny mark right up against the short metal edge. 
• Measure twice and cut once rather than measure once and cut twice. i.e. double check.
• If you do three dots you are already double checking, because if one is wrong, the ruler can't touch all three to draw a line.
• To check and see if a rectangle is accurate, measure the diagonals to see if they are the same.

Cut Carefully:

• Always have a good sharp knife.
• Check it first on a scrap of paper and if it doen't cut keenly, replace the blade.
• "You only cut yourrrself on a blunt knife" (said my father-in- law in his heavy Scottish brogue)!
• Hold the paper so that you are cutting towards yourself (it may be at a slight angle)
• This will give you the best strength (for heavy card) and the best arm control.
• Place your knife on the lowest dot and swivel the ruler round to the top dot. Check that its touching all three dots.

• The ruler must rest on the widest part of the paper, not the bit to be cut off.
• Pressure down on the ruler with the left hand (if you are right handed)
• Start at the top and make sure you cut through at the very top. Push the blade lightly against the ruler.
• If you are cutting card make sure that the knife is held so that the cut is at right angles to the mat.
• If you are cutting card, don't try to cut through in one shot.

• Stroke the knife gently down the ruler gently as the depth of the blade goes through the card.
• It may take 5-6 strokes.
• When cutting long sheets, cut about 20-30cm right through at a time, before carefully moving your right hand  further down the ruler and then tackle the next 20-30cm.

Two good tips: 
To cut gift wrap easily: Fold a crisp fold approximately where you need to cut, keep it folded, then cut the fold off.
This will mean you don't have to have a huge piece rolling up in your face the whole time.
To cut an exact A4 size, take a sheet of A4 paer and stick it down with removeable tape across the corners.
Lay your ruler on the A4 paper and cut next to the edge. Turn and cut, so that you always cut towards yourself three times. If you cut a sliver off, it's nearly accurate!
This method works very well for making little books as you can draw templates by hand or on the computer.

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