Monday, January 13, 2014

An inch is an inch.......really?

I don't know about you, but when I'm quilting, I'm using a ton of different rulers.  I grab whatever is handy at the moment to get a quick measurement.  I nearly always use a rotary-cutting type ruler when measuring out blocks, yardage, and certainly that 'perfect 1/4 inch', but every now and then I grab a measuring tape.  I have one that is 12 feet long, and it makes it very easy to smooth it out over the length and across a quilt to give me an idea of how much binding I'll need.  It doesn't have to be exact, because I always make more than I'll need.  But I never thought I had to question if it was correct or not!

So I was very surprised when my hubby just showed me this!

In his sewing room (yes, we have separate sewing rooms!  lol), where he makes kites and canvas bags, he uses measuring tapes a lot!  They are always great for measuring circumferences, like when he's making a duffle bag.  And NOW he knows why so many times, things just didn't go together quite right!

Over the course of 48" of this tape measure, it added 5/8 of an inch!  Holy cow!  That's HUGE!

Here's the proof!......





Needless to say, we have checked all the measuring tapes in the house (with a machinist's ruler), and have thrown out the evil-doers!

Beyond the quilting and piecing issues, if I had used those tapes to take my measurements while losing weight......that could have been really discouraging!  Right!?!  lol

Anyway, hoping to have some pics of quilty stuff soon.  I just spent the last 4 days cutting up my xmas fabrics for 5 different quilts!  My friend Pat is heading up a mystery quilt at our guild, and I thought to make it a xmas theme.  Well, since they were all pressed and ready for cutting, I figured, "kit up several quilts while I'm cutting for the one!"  And now my xmas stash is nearly gone!  I think I have enough left to piece for the backs, and that's it!  SWEET!

regan

18 comments:

  1. I guess I'm going to have to check the measurements of things around here. I'm cutting away for kits to take to my retreat at the end of the month.

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  2. Wow, I have been through this with my measuring spoons in my kitchen--and discovered great discrepancies between brands, but I never thought of rulers and measuring tapes. That 5/8" blows me away!

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  3. I never would have thought a tape could be that far off...you certainly proved it though.

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  4. I never would have thought a tape could be that far off...you certainly proved it though.

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  5. Boy my mind went somewhere else entirely.
    :-)

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  6. That a huge difference!! Thanks for the warning, I'll be checking my rulers to see if they're playing sneaky games with me. It's good to hear you're getting in early for Christmas.

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  7. I wouldn't even think of checking the ruler for accuracy. Yikes!

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  8. I've always been told to use the same quilting ruler throughout a project just for that reason. You proved there can be differences.

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  9. Hi Regan,
    Somewhere along my quilting journey, a long time ago, a teacher recommended using the same rulers while working on one particular project. She claimed that there can be a big difference between one brand and another. The thickness of the lines can be so different. Thankfully most of my rulers are the same brand, except when it's a specialty ruler. Good post.
    BFF Pat

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  10. I had heard that the tape rulers stretch with time and have always been careful not to pull on mine too much but really I just took that advice with a grain of salt, not really believing it! Your photos prove it all so now I'll know to be even more caereful - thank you for sharing!

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  11. I have been questioning this for years !!! So to see this post was great.
    Glad you did the work of comparing and measuring ;)
    Rose

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  12. The soft plastic type of measuring tape actually stretches over time, so they become less accurate. Something else to worry about is that the cutting mats are not always exact! I know a number of quilters who use the mat to measure, rather than the ruler. Which is a worry. Wonder how many others are out there.

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  13. Crazy! I have that trouble with one of my clear rulers and my cutting mat. I think the clear ruler is off. Drives me nuts!

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  14. WOW - that is velly, velly interesting! Ummmm - how many things have I miss measured?!!!! LOL Surely not my waist!!! LOL

    yeah for you - getting that cutting done up!!! Looking forward to all your FINISHES this year!!!

    Blessings and hugs!!

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  15. This is great advice! I'll be checking my stash of measuring tapes now!

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  16. I hadn't realized that rulers were that far off! I too use whatever is easiest to find. Now I know what to blame when the pieces don't fit!

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  17. I told my DH about this post and then we checked out his shop rulers. His are good. Makes you wonder where they were made hmmmm?

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