I am sorry to say that pet peeve #2 is ME! I can’t believe how mad I get at myself because I don’t change blades on my cutting tools often enough. Every time I do change the blade, I ask myself….”WHY did I wait so long?”.
My very favorite cutting tool is the finger exacto blade (both straight edge and swivel). The straight edge gets used much more often and is especially effective when making chipboard mini books. No matter how careful I measure and cut, the board and the paper might not be an EXACT fit. When I attach the paper, I align it to 2 sides of the board. Then I can easily go back with my exacto knife and trim off any excess paper, using the edge of the board as the straight edge. If the board is larger, I use my metal ruler and trim the board to fit the paper. Either way, the page looks pretty darn perfect for a home-made book. The trick here is a SHARP blade. Then I go back and sand the edges which actually bevels the paper and exposes a white core for most papers, adding an even more distinctive look to my pages. I will often ink the edges as well to get a distressed look. All these little things just make the book look less homemade! Blades are cheap-buy them in large quantities and change them OFTEN. You won’t regret it and it may eliminate pet peeve #2 in your scrapbooking life.
L.E.Summers, designer
Scraptacular Kits
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