Getting ready to make some artist trading cards? Here’s a simple cutting diagram that will give you 10 cards from one sheet of 8-1/2 x 11 inch cardstock:
First, cut three strips from the paper lengthwise. One strip will be 3-1/2 inches wide, and the other two will be 2-1/2 inches wide. (Remember, the dimensions of ATCs are 2-1/2 x 3-1/2 inches)
Next, cut four 2-1/2 inch pieces from your 3-1/2 inch strip. Cut three 3-1/2 inch pieces from each 2-1/2 inch strip. You’ll have just a tiny piece of waste at the end of each strip.
You should now have 10 perfectly sized cards from one sheet of cardstock.
Tips
Using a paper trimmer instead of scissors makes cutting ATCs a much easier and cleaner process. Fiskars makes several models readily available in craft stores, Wal-Mart, and most office supply stores.
If you usually use plain white cards as your backgrounds, go ahead and cut up half a dozen sheets of paper at once, so you’ll have a stack of backgrounds ready to go next time you’re inspired.
I like to frame my cards with a solid color, like the House of Blues card shown here. To do this, I cut my solid 2-1/2 x 3-1/2 inches, and my white background cards 2-1/4 x 3-1/4 inches. The same cutting method can be used with the smaller dimensions to get ten cards from one sheet. Just remember to keep your smaller cards in a different pile!
