Dummy knife: how to choose and how to use

2024 Author: Sierra Becker | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-26 03:46

A dummy knife is a stationery tool with a small blade for cutting out small details. When working with it, you need to take into account many nuances. In our article, we will further analyze how to choose the right paper cutter.

Tool functions

A dummy knife is a device for the work of craftsmen who make decor from paper. It cuts great:

• cardboard;
• office paper;
• pastel or watercolor paper.

With its help, masters create masterpieces, because they can cut very small details.

What does the tool consist of

The dummy knife consists of two parts: a handle and a blade that is inserted into it. The handle can be made of metal, plastic, wood. The main differences between breadboard knives are the shape of the blade.

So, on sale you can find tools with this blade shape:

• triangular;
• rectangular;
• sawtooth;
• rounded;
• with pointed and scalloped edge.

Blades for mock-up knife, besides this,differ in size and angle of sharpening. Let's take a look at each one.

Pointed blade

Its width is 4mm and thickness is 0.38mm. Sharpening angle -30°. The work of such a tool is filigree. But a knife with such a blade requires skill and refined movements.

Triangular blade

The width of this kind of blade is 6mm and the thickness is 0.45mm. Sharpening angle - 23°. The blade is used when working not only with paper, but also when cutting parts made of plastic, wood or plywood.

How to choose a quality dummy knife

When choosing a knife, first of all, pay attention to the material from which its handle is made. It is better to choose tools with a metal handle. If you like a knife with a plastic handle, then make sure that the material is strong enough and will not break under pressure. For the comfort of the master, a seal may be present on the handle so that the hand does not slip on the base of the knife.

The next thing to look at is the blade clip. This is a metal knob covered with rubber. In Chinese models, this part of the knife can be made of plastic. This is a poor quality tool, because after a while a backlash may form in such a mount, and the blade will fall out.

The choice of the cutting part was mentioned above. The best option is a stainless steel blade. It does not corrode and does not break. It is easy to sharpen and will last a long time.

Dummy rug and its analogues

To work with the tool, be sure to purchase a self-healing mat. If you notsure that you will like this type of creativity for a long time, and if you don’t want to spend money, then replace it with a stack of old newspapers. Please note that this savings is rather arbitrary, since when working on a special bedding, the knives do not dull so quickly. Also, at first, a breadboard mat can be replaced with a large beech cutting board, a piece of glass or linoleum.

Cutting paper with a craft knife

The history of artistic paper cutting begins with the so-called vytynanka. This type of art came to us from antiquity. The Slavs carved drawings on paper, birch bark, leather, foil, wood.

The difference between a vytynanka and another type of creativity:

• Image symmetry. For this, the sheet is folded in several layers and only after that the pattern is cut out.
• The work uses 1-2, rarely three colors of paper.
• The drawing contains folk symbols.

Vytynankas were made by craftsmen from Eastern Europe. In the western part there was a silhouette carving. Modern masters create real masterpieces in this technique. Those products that do not contain folk symbols and do not have symmetry are called paper graphics or filigree cutting.

Features of cutting with a breadboard knife

When carving with a craft knife, remember:

• For safety reasons, do not trust the tool to children. They better start with scissors.
• Draw the image diagram from the wrong side of the material.
• Cut Start with the smallest details. Then move on to the center section. contour, ifpresent, process last.
• Cut through all the details well. Leave no uncut parts. Do not under any circumstances rip them out. You can ruin the work.
• Straight lines are easier to cut using a ruler.
• To make cutting easier and more comfortable, rotate the printed material as you cut.
• Prepare a contrasting background for your artwork and glue it on.

Cutting Patterns

Anyone can master openwork carving. This does not require art education, but only a lot of patience and precision of movements. The work does not require a large number of materials and tools.

Everyone at least once encounters this kind of creativity when making New Year's snowflakes.

Cutting with a breadboard knife makes it possible to create a unique decor: paintings, shelves, panels, postcards, photo frames or mirrors. People who see such works for the first time experience a real culture shock at how fabulous such things seem.

Openwork lamps and houses look especially impressive, which can be illuminated with a flashlight or LED bulbs.