Who Knows How Much An Inch Is Anyway?

Measuring Tape from Seasonalsupplies

This week we moved across the hall to a different apartment. It was the easiest move ever! We just packed a cabinet at a time and moved it to the new place. The thing I dreaded most was re hanging all of my curtains, shelves and frames. I like dramatic curtains so I always hang mine higher than the window line and have them touch the floor. A great tip for hanging curtains: I always buy 4 panels for a window that needs 2. I hang the rod about 16 inches wider than the window. This fools your eye to make it look like the window is much larger than it is. It is amazing how much this changes the look of the room and lets more light in. 

Yardstick Planter Box from Whiskyginger

So while hanging the curtains in the bedroom I forgot to measure the space from the curtain rod holder to the ceiling and I had already moved the ladder to the other side. Ask any handyman, my methods for measuring and hanging curtains are probably not correct by any standard but in the end they usually look okay. So I asked Jess to use the tape measure to get me the measurement. She said "17" or 18." I said it's kind of important to get it exact as you can. She responded, "Who knows how much an inch is anyway." We were exhausted and frustrated and probably should have waited to tackle that job. We just started laughing so hard. I said. "Well I know what an inch is." Typical womans answer, right? 

Vintage Ruler Cuts by Coolvintage

I was inspired to write this blog post after that little episode of gut busting laughter. But really, how much is an inch? Is an inch really important, yes...it is. An inch too low and my curtains would have sagged at one side. I am contacted by customers all over the world looking for paper tags from my shop. The photos of my items are all cropped and edited. An image of a tag that is 2 inches in length looks the same size as a photo of the Eiffel Tower when cropped. It is very misleading but not much can be done with the photos. Some  sellers include photos with a ruler which is a great idea. I make sure the measurements are included in the listing description. As an online buyer it is very important to read the wording in the listing.  

Antique Ruler Pendants by Clabbercreekstudio

At one point in my life I decided it would be a great idea if me and my Bestie opened a soap making business. In hindsight I realize this was not a smart move. We had never made soap and knew nothing about it. We got a recipe book from the library and bought all of the ingredients. We decided to make olive oil and lye soap infused with raspberry tea.  My bestie ordered some molds for soap on ebay. We mixed the lye outside on my driveway in my expensive Wolfgang Puck pots and pans, not smart! A little dripped on the driveway and I didn't even think anything of it until the next day when it was pitted with holes where the lye ate it away. We mixed the soap with the tea and it became this beautiful pink color and smelled amazing. The molds came in and were super tiny, they could have made soap for a dollhouse  We should have read the description and measurements. So in the end our soap turned out horrible. We had left the tea leaves in the soap and it eventually turned this disgusting brown color. After paying to fix the driveway, buy new pans and all of our expenses I was about 300.00 down and I had a years supply of the worlds most disgusting soap. Live and learn...but always read the size when buying online.