Tips & Techniques: Why I Love Grid Paper
So, I realized after I made and uploaded this video that there are MANY other uses for grid paper. How do you use grid paper? :)
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posted on January 12, 2008 3:56 PM by Kristina |
26 Comments posted in Tutorials |
Thanks !
Oh well, this is the first comment I leave on my everyday-inspiration-woman's blog :)
So... Thanks again !
how cute are you!? I love this video! And your #2 reason - I can never get my sides "square" - maybe the gridpaper will help!
TFS!
I love grid paper--if nothing else, it's nice having a disposable work surface! Also, I do love using it for scratch paper as well...I like to keep track of the dimensions of paper I'm using on a project so that I can easily cut paper later on for my class participants.
Hail the mighty grid paper! :)
I agree, Kristina - super, super handy to have on the worksurface. They went over uses for it at Regionals this year and I find myself making even more use of it than before. My number one favourite (after using it to line things up straight) - measuring ribbon - that ruler at the bottom is so handy!
Here are some other ones I jotted down in my notes:
- customers can jot the demo's contact info on it during a workshop
- good place for a wish list or "grocery" list (if you're running out of adhesive, brads, etc.)
- sketch out a card you may think of part way through creating something else
- checking to see if your stamps are mounted straight before you stamp, that way you can "skew" the positioning to get it straight!
I obviously use it to prevent stamping on my desk (haha) BUT what I LOVE to use it for is creating potential card designs--make a couple variations with all your dimensions and stamp your colour combos on it and refer to it later, I am an online teacher so I end up taking notes on it when I am on a business call on and it is good for doodling on too. I am actually a grid paper fanatic right now, so if I don't have any patterned paper grid paper on hand you can BET that I would use a piece of this on the front of my card too.
I use my grid paper, a ruler and stylus to scor my cards. I just line up the ruler on the grid lines, run my stylus along the ruler and I always get a great crisp fold on my card.
Melissa mentioned this, but my #1 use for grid paper is checking on how the stamps are mounted BEFORE you stamp on your card. I've drilled this into my club ladies' heads and it's saved many a project. I've told them to line up the edge of the wood block with one of the lines on the grid paper and then stamp. That way it's super easy to see if the stamp is a tiny bit crooked and compensate for that when you stamp it on your card. I actually sat next to a demo at convention who, I'm pretty sure, messed up every card she made because she'd just ink the stamp and stamp it right on her card without checking how it was mounted. She was so frustrated and I was frustrated watching her. It was all I could do to keep from snatching the stamps out of her hand and lecturing her about using her grid paper. Sorry for the rant. Thanks for another awesome video.
Your #1 fan.
I am addicted to your blog! You make everything look so commonsensical and easy even when I know it is not! You rock!!!
Who knew there were so many things to love about grid paper. I will for sure try some of these ideas. The only things I currently use mine for is to protect my work surface, the test stamp before stamping on my card stock and measuring ribbon using the ruler. But lining up the card stock is a great idea! And keeping notes, wonderful.
Thanks!
I have gridpaper on my next SU order. I never even considered it until I saw you making sure stuff on your card was straight with it. :)
Thanks for the helpful tips. I, too, will have to get some on my next order. It would help me to get things adhered in a straight line.... good tip.
You still make me laugh. Love your blog. I'm hooked. - Sarah
My first comment here so let me start by saying I absolutely LOVE your blog and your work.
I love grid paper for all the same reasons. I also use it a lot as a scratch pad to write ideas on if i'm working on a page, or color combos if working on a card.
Love your videos, can't wait to see what's next.
Oh I simply love your videos, your cards your everything thanks again. Yours is the first blog I visit. ( no pressure) lololol love ya work :)
Hi!
I LOVE my grid paper too! It's always on my work surface.
One of the most important things I use my grid paper for helping me mount my stamps straight. This is particularly important with greetings and alphabets and also means that I don't always have to use my Stamp-a-ma-jig as much, even though I love that tool too!
I am pretty careful about the way I mount my stamps. I want the rubber to stamp just like the image on the top, so I can "trust" the stamp when I use it. I always put my sticker on top first, trying to center it in the middle (left-right and up-down). Then I place my trimmed image/greeting on the wood, as straight as I can and also in the middle of the wooden block. Then I gently ink up the stamp and stamp it onto my grid paper, looking straight down at the stamp so I can line up the bottom of the wood piece with a line on the grid paper. If the image comes out straight, then I know it is mounted straight, if not, I tweak it until it does stamp straight. If you do this right away when you're mounting your stamps, the rubber will gently pull off the wood so you can re-mount. If you wait until it is set, you have to use the microwave to warm the adhesive so you can remove it, and that doesn't always work very well.
It is so sad to make a beautiful card and then stamp a greeting on it (that you want to be straight) and it isn't, so now I always do this when I mount my stamps! Hope the idea helps someone else.
I love reading about all the other ways to use grid paper!
Thanks for your very fun, inspirational and informative blog! Love it!
We saw the uses of grid paper at a regional here in Hamilton, ON. I had never bought it before that, but after I saw all the uses it has, I can't work without it anymore. Also, don't forget it's double-sided paper :)
Greetings, Ilse
Question for you Kristina:
I really, really want to learn to do calligraphy. Not the old fashioned kind, but a more modern kind. I heard you mention that you do calligraphy. Do you have any suggestions for me? Where can I start to learn about this craft?
LOVE your blog. All my friends read it too. We want to meet you someday! You're the best.
I, too, use grid paper in the same ways that you have mentioned. I had never thought to use it when mounting my stamps or checking to see if the rubber is "true" in relation to the image on the block. The one thing that I always use grid paper for is checking to make sure that I have adequate ink coverage on some of my larger stamps. I hate it when you stamp a large image and the center doesn't come out! GRRRR! I also pre-stamp tiny words on my grid paper to see how much pressure to use so that the word doesn't come out as a tiny ink blob! Who hasn't done that? Thank goodness for grid paper!
I've never even thought of using grid paper before finding your blog but I'll definitely be using it in the future :)
I use grid paper for most of these tasks as well. One more biggie for me: after I clean my stamps on my scrub pad, I stamp them on my grid paper several times to get any last residual ink off of them. I'm bad about washing my scrub pads as often as I should, so this is my sneaky way of putting it off just a bit longer while still keeping my stamps clean...
Thanks for the great blog & videos!!!
aaaaaaaaaarrrrrggggghhhhhhhh
You've really made me want some and can I find it...no :(
I always go to ebay when I can't find something and I can't even find it there!!
I'm in England by the way....think I'd best move to the US lol ;)
Great video
I use my grid paper the 3 ways you suggested in that awesome video, plus the way Toni and Stampmom use it for cleaning off residual ink or moisture, and to check my images as a practice run before inking and stamping my projects.
I also use my grid paper to stamp off an image if I want a lighter impression of the image on my project.
Grid paper sounds handy and i am wondering if you know where i could get any from in the UK? I've had look on ebay.co.uk and also typed "grid paper" into google, but it doesn't seem to like it much. Does it go by any other names or brands?
I am an aspiring graphic designer and i am obsessed with tape glue thanks to you. Who would have thought about putting glue into a tape. Genius.
Any help would be appreciated. Thanks, Laura.
Hi Kristina,
I also use my grid paper with background stamps. I lay my background stamp rubber side up on one half of the paper, ink it up and then place the cardstock on top. I then fold over the other half of the grid paper onto the top of my stamp and cardstock and use my hands to rub evenly all over. The grid paper is great because it's big enough for this process and it stops me getting ink all over my hands.
Bec.
Cute video, it looks like you had fun making it! Thanks for sharing.
Hi
I just want to say that I love your blog and
I am addicted to it!! You make everything look so easy and make my inspired.
I have already said som of my friend here in Iceland (were I´m from) about your blog and they love it also.
Kepp up with this good job and thanks for sharing.
Bryndis from Iceland
What a great blog! I love your clean and simple style and your great videos - you have a great, laid back, fun personality!
I know this sounds funny (hopefully not too weird) but I love your eye makeup in this video!