By Angie Felix

Making the Cut - Using an X-acto® knife

Whether you're making cards, album pages or other paper-crafting projects, the X-acto® knife is a great tool to have on hand. An X-acto® allows precise cuts and is perfect for basic techniques like cropping photos and making mats.

Designer Susan Cobb finds her X-acto® allows her to be precise and cut easily and cleanly with fewer mistakes. She uses her X-acto® for almost everything she cuts and explains that the knives are great for cutting evenly, particularly for making squares, paper strips or mats. The X-acto® can also be used for cutting out of the middle of your paper. You can cut the lines of a diamond fold or cut a window, as well as making small holes perfect for inserting brads.

Susan says it's always a good idea to use a ruler as your guide for straight cutting. She holds the knife similar to a pencil, but says the most important part is the way the blade is angled. Susan holds her knife at about a 35 degree angle, so the flat part of the blade (not the point) is against the edge of the ruler cutting the paper. Susan lines up her ruler horizontally and cuts from left to right, but ultimately says that you should find the method that works best for you.

As for the amount of pressure, Susan says you don't need to press very hard to achieve your cuts—in fact, applying too much pressure can break the blade. Just apply enough to cut through your paper. "You may need to practice a bit, but once you get used to cutting with your X-acto®, it's easy and becomes almost automatic!" Susan says. For best results, you should also change the blade on your knife often. Susan changes hers every day, since she uses her knife for 6 to 8 eight hours of cutting. "If your blade is dull you have to apply more pressure," she explains. "You're more likely to cut yourself as a result."

Another safety tip Susan recommends is to avoid getting in a hurry. Always take the time to set up your space for cutting. "When you get in a hurry you can easily makes mistakes or hurt yourself." You should also avoid trying to cut through too many sheets at a time—your knife will cut through two sheets of cardstock, or a closed card, but don't try to do more than that at once.

Storage is also very important—store your knife with the cover on, or if you have a retractable X-acto®, make sure the blade is retracted to avoid injury. Also, be careful not to leave the knife laying on your work surface or out in the open where small children can find it. If you're planning on traveling with your knife, remove the blade if it isn't retractable. Store the blades in the case they come in for safety.

A few necessary tools to have for using an X-acto® are a cutting mat (Susan recommends one with gridlines to help you make straight cuts) and a metal cork-backed ruler. The metal prevents you from cutting through it, and the cork back will keep the ruler from slipping.

Another tip Susan recommends is using your knife to help you arrange small pieces on a project. You can prick the small paper pieces with the tip of your knife, then dip them in glue and use the knife to help you place it precisely.

According to Susan, knives with smaller blades allow you to cut in tighter places and allow for better control, but you may need to adjust the angle you hold the knife at for the best cutting.

For more basic tips and ideas, check out Scrapbooking101.net