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Home Math for Grownups

Fabric Math: How does width affect the bottom line?

So you’re buying fabric for a project. Whether you’re doing the sewing yourself or sending it out to a professional seamstress, tailor or upholsterer, the width of the textile is a big consideration.

Fabric is typically sold by the yard, and it’s manufactured in standard widths, usually ranging from 40 inches to 110 inches.  The wider the material, the more area you’ll actually take home per yard. (There’s more to consider here, including the way the pattern runs and the grain of the fabric.  But we’ll save those details for another post.)

Naturally, wider fabric also sports a higher price tag per yard.  And doing the math can help you figure out if it’s a good deal or not.  That’s why textile designer Harmony Susalla asked me to write a guest post for her blog.  A snippet appears below.  Read the rest on Harmony’s site.

When you’re a complete fabric junkie like I am, you’re always looking for a bargain.  Of course, my eye is drawn to gorgeous designer fabrics with really high thread count. Swoon!  But the cost—well, that can bring on a real fainting spell.

That’s why I started out sewing with fat quarters.  I found fabrics that I loved—and could easily afford—and figured out really cool things I could make with them.  Little, zippered change purses, box-bags for balls of yarn and knitting needle rolls.  I sewed and sewed and sewed.  And I was very happy.

Until I started eyeing my bare windows and mismatched sofa and side chairs.  If I could make all of those little things, I could make big things—like curtains and slipcovers—too.

But cotton fabrics are generally 40”, 54”, 60” or 72” wide.  And that meant I was buying alot of fabric.

That’s when I met decorator fabrics.  And then I found HarmonyArt.  These babies come in 110” widths—plenty wide for the 98” long drapes I had planned.  And you can’t deny that Harmony’s designs are gorgeous.  Perfect for curtains, tablecloths, slipcovers, and heck, if I quilted, even quilts!

The prices were much higher though.

Click over to Harmony’s blog to read the rest.  And come back on Friday to get the scoop on my latest sewing project–new curtains for my living room, using Harmony’s fabric.  Meantime, share your experiences using math in the sewing room.  What kind of math have you had to use to complete a sewing project?  Share your story in the comments section.

(Harmony and I organized a barter for this guest post; she sent me one yard of her Evelyn fabric in exchange for the post.)

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Home Math for Grownups

Radiator Math: It’s all about the variables

Photo courtesy of GeS

Like most home-improvement projects, figuring out the size radiators that you’ll need for a room hinges on a formula — actually several formulas.  Install radiators that are too large, and you’ll burn up.  Too tiny radiators?  You’ll need that Snuggie that your Aunt Myrtle gave you for your birthday last year.  And those formulas depend on variables.

What’s a variable you say?  Let me explain.

For all you English majors out there, pay attention to the root: vary.  Yep, variables are things that vary or change.  So in a formula, the variables are those little letters.  And in many formulas — like the ones needed to calculate the number and size of the radiators in your house — there are lots of little letters.

What are the variables that your radiator technician depends on?

Think about the rooms in your house — some are small and some are large.  In other words the size of the rooms vary.  And any good radiator guy — like our friend Frank — will tell you that the size of a room determines the size of the radiator you need.  Small room? Small radiator.  Huge room? Probably more than one good-sized radiator.

So, guess what?  Your old friend the volume formula plays a role.

V = lwh

where V = volume, l = length, w = width and h = height

(See those variables? Length, width, height?  They’re pretty simple to figure out in a room with rectangular walls, floor and ceiling.)

But there are more variables to consider.  Typically, you want your bedroom and hallways to be a little cooler than your kitchen and family room.  So the kind of room that you’re heating will be another variable.

And rooms with lots of windows and doors — or houses with poor insulation — will lose more heat.  Yep, more variables to consider.

Things are getting pretty darned complicated around here.

This is why most radiator technicians often use an online or computer program calculator to determine the size of the radiators needed for each room of a house.

But if you’re renovating an old house, like I am (and your name isn’t Bob Vila), you won’t likely need to find the BTU/hr needed to heat your dining room or the size of the radiator you need for your newly restored downstairs powder room.  But knowing a little bit about the math that goes into the process can help you feel confident about the work your radiator guy is doing.

Besides, thinking of radiator heat is a good way to describe variables.  Especially in November.

When have you used variables to work out a home-improvement problem? Share your ideas in the comments section.

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Home Math for Grownups

Nesting in November

Photo courtesy of jack_spellingbacon

I don’t know about everyone else, but by the time November rolls around, I’m ready to cuddle up in my house and focus internally for a while.  That doesn’t mean that I forget about my friends or never set foot in my front yard.  But I do tend to be drawn to little crafts and DIY projects.

So all month, I’m going to share some ways that I feather my nest before launching into full holiday mode in December.  Of course all of these ideas and projects will have some kind of math angle to them — because if you haven’t figured it out yet, math is everywhere!

I thought I’d start out today showing you how I combine geometry and my crochet needle.

This time of year, I love to crochet.  Not only is it a great way to pass the time indoors, but as I crochet a blanket, it warms up my lap!  There’s lots and lots of counting involved, but I’m a sloppy and lazy crocheter.  So instead of counting rows, I depend on geometry to help me figure out how close I am to being finished.

This little trick is pretty much how carpenters can tell if their walls are square.  But with fibers–yarn or fabric–it’s even easier, because all you have to do is fold.  (Folding a deck is darned near impossible.)

Usually the little dishtowels I make are squares.  I don’t use a pattern, so to check my progress I fold the top edge to meet one of the side edges.  If I get a perfect triangle, I have a square.

This dishtowel is a square. (Okay, cut me a little slack — it’s been used and washed a few times!)

Ta-da! When I folded the bottom edge to meet the right edge, I get a (somewhat) perfect triangle.

But if I fold along the diagonal and I don’t get a triangle, I know the dishtowel is rectangular.

This dishtowel is a rectangle. (Sort of.)

See! When you try to make a triangle, the edges don’t match up.

Why does this work this way?  Basically, it comes down to the Pythagorean Theorem, but in all honesty, you don’t need to know that.  Just remember that if you fold a square along its diagonal, you’ll get a right triangle with two equal sides.

How has your basic understanding of geometry helped you with a project?  Share your story in the comments section.

And come back tomorrow for a special edition of Math at Work and on Friday for a great nesting project that will put you in the giving mood!

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Home Math for Grownups

Think You’ve Got Problems? Solve Them!

Today, I have the great honor of guest posting at Simple Mom, a wonderful, practical and easy-going spot on the web for home managers.  The subject of the day is problem solving and the deck I built a few years ago.

Simple problem solving skills can make the impossible possible.

You’ve probably figured out by now that math in your everyday life isn’t much like the worksheets and timed drills you suffered through in elementary and middle school. And in the real world, you can leave those way, way behind.

That’s because grownup math has more to do with problem solving than remembering that 7 times 8 is 56. Most of us don’t use trigonometry or calculus. But basic math skills figure into some of the most critical decisions of each day—how to save money, save time and save your sanity. These days, you need to know how much top soil to order for your flower bed or what time your parents will arrive in Boston, if they’re driving in from St. Louis.

Four summers ago, I decided to build a deck—something I’d never done before. This process taught me a lot about the math I already knew and how to fill in the gaps with some pretty simple problem solving skills.

Read the rest of the post, and comment there to win one of 10 paperback copies of Math for Grownups. (You can comment here, but it won’t get you in the drawing, so make sure to head over to Simple Mom.)

Film Friday is taking the day off (it’s basement is flooded and it’s worried that its rare collection of film reels–including outtakes of Citizen Kane where Orson Wells reveals that “Rosebud” is actually a reference to the Fibonacci Sequence–might be under water), but you can check out past Film Friday editions, if you really miss it.Save

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Home Math for Grownups

Math, Treadmills, Book-Club Wine and Hard Boiled Eggs (Seriously)

Photo courtesy of MinimalistPhotography101.com

When my friend Alisa Bowman asked me to answer some math questions for a health blog she writes for, I didn’t quite expect what she sent over.  In terms of health, I’m usually asked how to find BMI or how to calculate the perfect caloric intake.  Here’s what Alisa wanted to know:

I’ve heard that treadmill readouts are notoriously inaccurate. Is there a way to figure calories burned in your head?

 I’m at book club. How many glasses of wine can I drink and still be safe to drive home? 

If I am at high altitude, how do I figure out how long to boil an egg to make sure I don’t get salmonella? 

I had no idea how to answer these, so I put my reporter cap on and did some research.  I was especially interested in the last question, as I’ve had zero experience cooking at high altitudes.  And I found the answer really interesting!  Maybe you will, too.

(By the way, Alisa is the author of an amazing book, called Project Happily Ever After, that her story of how she went from wishing her husband dead to falling back in love with him.  Check out her site.)

I loved Alisa’s random questions.  They made me think, and I learned something — which is the best part of being a writer.  Do you have random math questions?  Have you been in a situation when you think math could help, but you’re not sure how?  If so, post your question in the comments section or drop me a line.  If it’s a good fit, I’ll answer it in an upcoming blog post!

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Home Math for Grownups Math for Parents

Food for Thought: 5 Ways Hurried Moms Can Make Math Easy

Photo courtesy of sabianmaggie

Boy, do I remember those early days of parenting my daughter. I was working full time, coddling a strong-willed toddler, trying to serve balanced meals, selecting great books to read to her and trying to keep my house and yard clean enough that my neighbors wouldn’t call Child Protective Services on me.

Adding one more thing to the list would have made my head blow off of my shoulders.

And yet, today, we are being asked to do that one more thing: introduce numeracy to our little Janes and Johns. In other words, math.

Want some tips on how parents can develop numeracy in their little kids–and keep their own heads on their shoulders, right where they belong? Read the rest of this post at Words To Eat By, where I guest posted today.

By the way, would you like me to guest post at your blog?  Or do you know of a blog that I would fit right in with? I’ve got lots of ideas to share with anyone who will listen! And I promise I’m a good guest.  I wipe out the sink after I brush my teeth and don’t mind if the cat sleeps on my pillow.  Get the details here.

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Home Math for Grownups Math for Parents Math for Teachers

Nothing But Net

KONICA MINOLTA DIGITAL CAMERA

A few years ago, I got this idea that I wanted to learn how to sew.  My mother in law bought me a lightweight machine at a yard sale for $10. So I decided it was time to teach myself how to sew.  How hard could it be?

Turns it, not so much, when you have the internet at your fingertips.  With a few searches, I unearthed great Flickr tutorials for zipper pouches, blog posts with step-by-step instructions on how to make box bags and a really, really amazing month-long series of fat-quarter projects on a blog called Sew, Mama, Sew!

One of my zipper pouches made from ModGirls Sis Boom by Jennifer Paganelli

A fat quarter is a piece of 18″ x 22″ fabric.  In most cases, it’s a quarter of a yard, but not cut from one side of the width to the other.  And it’s a cheap and easy way to buy those gorgeous designer fabrics, like Amy Butler, Moda and Alexander Henry.  This is a big deal, because I was quickly realizing that I’m a fabric addict.  The editors and contributors at Sew, Mama, Sew had great projects for fat quarters: purses, journal covers, pin cushions, crochet hook rolls and even fabric boxes.  I was in heaven!

When I published Math for Grownups and learned that a virtual tour would be a great way to promote the book, my first thought was that maybe — just maybe! — I could guest post on Sew, Mama, Sew.  Imagine my surprise when the editors there jumped at the chance.  I felt like I was one of the cool kids.

And today is the big day. You can read my guest post, “Nothing but Net,” which talks about how we can mentally (and physically) translate 2-dimensional figures into the 3rd dimension.  That’s what patterns are, after all.  Even if you don’t sew, this skill is a great one to have!

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Home Math for Grownups

Open Thread Friday: Math-in-the-garden questions

In honor of a gorgeous weekend that is just around the corner (at least here in Charm City), I thought I’d see if anyone has any backyard math questions.  Are you wondering how to figure out how many cubic yards of mulch you  need?  What about setting the darned sprinkler system so that your posies get exactly the right amount of the wet stuff?  Or perhaps you’re planning a new garden and need some advice on buying materials.

Dig deep, and post your questions below.  I’ll come up with some answers–before the weekend is over!

The last Open Thread Friday prompted a salary question that I thought deserved its own post.  Check it out here: Is Your Boss Ripping You Off?

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Home Math for Grownups Work

Math at the Permit Office (or Contractors Ain’t No Dummies)

If you’ve ever been to your city’s or county’s permit office, you can probably imagine how frustrated I was yesterday at around noon.  All I wanted was a demolition and construction permit for our newest renovation project.

Image courtesy of Ross Crawford

In my floral skirt and gold flip-flops (I had painted my toenails an hour earlier), I felt just a teensy bit out of place, among the blue-jeaned, unshaven contractors, who brandished rolled up blueprints and wore cell phones and tape measures clipped to their belts.. Still, I had my hand-sketched scale drawing and photos of the house as it looks now. As long as I could get the form filled out correctly, I was good to go.

But this was my second trip downtown in search of approval for our reno plans, and I was determined to get out of there with a permit this time.  That meant I was prepared to stay all afternoon — and go up to the counter as many times as I was asked to do.

This dude was in trouble. No scale drawing and no clue how to make one.

On my sixth visit to the counter — after completing the form three different times and calling my contractor once to clarify some measurements–I realized that I was just about home free.  The attendant asked me to add some notes to my paperwork, while she helped the next person in line.

This dude was in trouble.  No scale drawing and no clue how to make one.  The attendant gave him a quick lesson, along with a blank piece of paper and a scale ruler.  But it was clear that this guy was in for a long, long afternoon.

So, what is a scale drawing, and why is it important?

A scale drawing shows an object to scale. (Duh, right?) In other words, all of the measurements in a scale drawing are proportionate to the measurements of the actual object.  But making a scale drawing doesn’t burn up too many brain cells.  That’s because of three simple tools.

  1. Graph paper.  Each square on a piece of graph paper is 1/4 inches wide and tall.  So, if you define your scale as 1/4 inch = 1 foot, 10′ will be 10 boxes .
  2. Scale rulers: These are great if you don’t have graph paper, and you can use the same scale: 1/4 inch = 1 foot.  (See the picture above.)
  3. Computer programs: These translate your measurements into scale drawings for you.  But if you’re like me, it’s hard to visualize how to input the correct measurements.  I prefer to just make a drawing by hand.

Scale drawings are useful in lots of situations, but I’ve found them most helpful in home improvements and gardening.  (A quick sketch of my flowerbeds keeps me from overcrowding my begonias.)  And apparently, the city permits office wants to see them, too!

(Wondering if I got my permit? I can proudly say, yes!  And I know for a fact that my scale drawing helped.)

What math have you used in home improvements?  Is there a time when math got in the way of a home improvement project?