Technical Field The present invention relates to a cutting and layering guide, especially but not exclusively, for use in making cards or for other crafts.

Background When making cards, many designs of cards involve layering a top card on a second backing card whereby the backing card provides a border to the top card. This requires a skilful and time consuming process of cutting card at right angles, cutting the top card and/or backing card to exact dimensions, and then bonding (with tape or glue) the top card to the backing card in the correct position. It can be very difficult to get the border perfect, with the top card exactly square to backing card. If it is not square it can look unsightly.

Summary According to the present invention there is provided a guide comprising two transparent elongate arms, each with parallel side edges, connected at a right angle to each other at one first end, and each arm having a plurality of a first set of hairlines spaced apart along the length of an arm, the hairlines being parallel to each other and parallel the side edges of the arm.

The edges are preferably cutting guide edges.

Preferably the guide is a cutting and layering guide. Preferably the side edges are reinforced with a hard material such as strips of (sheet) metal.

The guide may comprise a second set of hairlines spaced apart along the length of each arm and transverse of and most preferably (substantially perpendicular) to the first set of hairlines. The guide may be viewed as a measurement instrument.

Preferably the (adjacent) hairlines of a respective set of hairlines are spaced apart by an equal distance. The hairlines may be spaced apart by an increment of a metric or imperial measurement, such as a unitary increment.

Preferably the guide is made substantially wholly of transparent material, such as plastic material, such that a surface directly underlying the guide is viewable from above the guide.

Preferably each arm has a second end remote from the first end, and the second end is normal to the elongate arm and incorporates a length measuring scale. The second end may be bevelled. In one embodiment, the pair of arms are hinged to each other at their first end whereby the arms can be folded from a first in use position with the arms at a right angle to a second storage position with one arm adjacent the other.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Various embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 shows a perspective view,

Figure 2 shows a view of the guide of Figure 1 folded, Figures 3A and 3B show the invention in use, and Figure 4 shows a plan view of a second embodiment.

Detailed Description

Referring initially to Figure 1 there is shown a cutting and layering guide 1. Guide 1 has a pair of transparent elongate arms 10, 20 each with parallel side edges 1 1 , 12, 21 , 22 respectively. Arms 10, 20 may be formed from plastics. Arm 10 has a 45° first end 13 and arm 20 has a 45° first end 23. First ends 13 and 23 are hinged together by a hinge formed from hinge plates 14, 24 connecting the arms 10, 20 in a first in use position at a right angle to each other. Arms 10, 20 can be folded on the hinge axis to a second storage position with one arm adjacent the other (see Figure 2).

Arm 10 has four hairlines 15A, 15B, 15C, 15D spaced apart along the length of arm 10 and across its width. The hairlines are parallel to each other and parallel the side edges of the arm. Arm 20 has four hairlines 25A, 25B, 25C, 25D spaced apart along the length of arm 10. The hairlines are parallel to each other and parallel the side edges of the arm. The hairlines are each spaced apart by an equal metric or imperial increment such as 0.5cm or 1/4 inch. Only four hairlines are shown for purposes of illustration, but more than four could be provided.

The side edges 1 1 , 12, 21 , 22 are reinforced with a hard or hardened material such as a strip of sheet metal provided thereon, so that a cutting blade (not illustrated) can be passed down the edge without damaging the (edges of the) arms 10, 20. It will be appreciated that in an alternative embodiment only (inner) edges 1 1 and 21 may be provided with hard/hardened material. Alternatively, (outer) edges 12 and 22 alone may be provided with hard/hardened material.

Each arm 10, 20 has a second end 16, 26 remote from the respective first end 13, 23, and the second end is normal to the elongate arm and incorporates a length measuring scale (imperial or metric) 16A, 126A similar to that on a ruler. The second ends may each have bevelled edges, as shown.

Referring now to Figures 3A and 3B there is shown a backing card X and a top card in the form of a message card Y. The message card Y needs to be positioned on backing card X, and backing card X cut, such that the backing card forms an equal size border around the message card. In this case the border is the width of the spacing of two hairlines (e.g. 2 x 0.5cm = 1 cm) on the guide 1 described above. Guide 1 is placed on the bottom right hand corner of backing card X so that the edges 1 1 , 21 are parallel to and spaced two hairlines in from the right side edge and bottom edge respectively of backing card X. Message card Y is then bonded to the backing card X such that the message card side edge and bottom edge abuts the edges 1 1 , 21 of guide 1 , as shown in Figure 3 A.

As shown in Figure 3B, guide 1 is then positioned so that its side edges 12, 22 are positioned parallel to and spaced two hairlines out from the left side edge and top edge of message card Y. A cutting blade can then be passed down the side edges 12, 22 so cutting the card X along the lines "a-a" and "b-b". Message card Y will then be perfectly centred on backing card X, with card. X forming a uniform border of two hairlines width around message card Y.

The guide may be used for any suitable purpose other than that shown in Figures 3A, 3B. The measuring scales may be used to measure lengths as required. The two arms need not be hinged but could be formed as a unitary product with the arms 10, 20 at right angles. It is envisaged that a metric and imperial version of the cutting guide could be sold either singly or in combination. Reference is now made to Figure 4 which shows a further embodiment. The guide 100 comprises two elongate transparent arms 1 10 and 120, arranged at ninety degrees to one another. The arms 1 10 and 120 are rigidly secured, relative to each other. Each arm is provided with a plurality of spaced apart, longitudinally extending hairlines 1 15. Additionally, each arm is also provided with a plurality of spaced apart hairlines 1 17 which extend transversely of the hairlines 1 15. The hairlines 1 15 are equally spaced apart, from one hairline to an adjacent hairline.

The arms define inner edges 1 1 1 and 121 , and outer edges 1 12 and 122. The inner edges and/or the outer edges may be reinforced, for example by way of the provision of a hard or hardened material, such as a strip of sheet metal.

Neighbouring the outer edges 1 12 and 122, outer peripheral margins of the arms are provided with through-holes 130, each positioned on a respective transverse hairline 1 17. Each through-hole extends from an upper surface of an arm to a lower surface. The holes 130 are dimensioned such as to allow a user to pass a distal end of a pen, pencil or pointed marker tool through the hole, and so make a mark at a required location.

The guide 100 is further provided with (numeric) indicia 150 and 151 , representative of distance value graduations corresponding to alternate transverse hairlines 1 17. Indicia 150 are provided along the outer margins of the arms and indicia 151 are provided along the inner margins of the arms. The measurement indicia, together with the transverse hairlines, conveniently allow a user to use the edges in a similar way to a ruler.

The guide 100 is useable in the same way as described above in relation to the guide 1 , albeit with the additional functionality of the transverse hairlines 1 17 and the through-holes 130. Further embodiments of the invention may take a form different to that specifically described above.

Although in the embodiments described above, the guides may be used to centre a squared or square-shaped layer/object onto and with respect to an underlying layer, the guides may also be used to centre a non-square object, such as other polygons, rounded shapes such as circles and ellipses, or indeed any other (regularly or non- regularly) shaped objects (of sheet/layer form). Furthermore, the guides can be used to suitably position an object/layer relative to an underlying surface. For example, the guides may be used to offset an upper object/layer relative to a centre point of the surface area of the underlying layer, and so provide eccentric location.

Mention has been made above of metric and imperial versions of the guide. Use of both metric and imperial versions simultaneously or at least in relation to a particular object, where the object has a first principal dimension which is a whole metric value and a second principal dimension which is a whole imperial value, or at least the dimensions correspond to respective hairlines on the guides. For example, in the instance of an ellipse, where its height has a metric value and its width has an imperial value, a metric guide can be used to create the border of the underlying layer, relative to the height and the imperial version can be used in relation to the width. This allows accurate creation of a border since positions in register with respective hairlines can be used (as opposed to a position which lies between hairlines).

In a further embodiment, (numeric) measurement indicia may be provided in relation to the hairlines 1 15. For ease of use, the measurement indicia may be provided in a different colour/tone to that of the associated hairlines.