Envelopes
Envelopes are usually referred to using 'C' sizes. The 'C' sizes run in line with the card blank numbers.
For example, if you purchased an A6 greeting card, the envelope you would need for this card is a C6 envelope.
Below are a few more sizes and comparisons, to help you match up other dimensions.
Please be aware that the sizes below are guidelines only. Exact measurements to specific products can fluctuate slightly, depending on the manufacturer and brand of card/paper.
| |
fits card size |
envelope (mm) |
envelope (inches) |
DL |
letter |
220 x 110 |
8 2/3 x 4 1/3 |
C6 |
A6 |
162 x 114 |
6 3/8 x 4 1/2 |
C5 |
A5 |
229 x 162 |
9 x 6 3/8 |
C4 |
A4 |
324 x 229 |
12 3/4 x 9 |
One size which you will see in the table is 'DL'. This is generally used for letters and businesses, as it was built to hold an A4 piece of paper folded into three (folded twice).
There has been a card blank designed for a 'DL' envelope - but it only has one fold (like all other card blanks), not two folds (as stated above).
Envelope sizes may vary slightly from the dimension in our table, depending on the make or style of envelope. Usually they are just slighly larger than the related paper size, so that they can house the paper or card easily, without a squeeze.
Paper and Card Weights
Paper and card are commonly referred to as 'gsm' for their weight or thickness. GSM stands for Grams per Square Metre. For example, a square metre of 160gsm paper, would weigh 160 grams on the scales.
Most card and paper tends to be sold in sizes of A4, A5, A6, etc. They have a gsm weight/thickness, so that you can identify how firm or flimsy the paper actually is.
A good example of this is the full reams of office paper. They have 500 sheets per ream and tend to range between 60-90gsm. The most common gsm for office paper is 80gsm.
Reams of standard card range from 120-200gsm. 120gsm card is a very flimsy card and is not suitable as a card blank. 200gsm is a perfect thickness of card to start using as card blanks. However, the most common card thickess in this range is 160gsm. It is thin enough to be adaptable to many projects, easy to cut through (whether manually, or through a machine or trimmer), and is also thick enough to withstand liquid glue, without it rippling or mis-shaping the card. 160gsm card is twice as thick as standard office paper and holds 250 sheets of A4 card to a full ream.
Anything thicker than 200gsm is more commonly described as cardboard. A lot of specialty card (such as glitter card, holograph card, pearlised card, etc) tends to be between 200-300gsm, and works brilliant for card blanks, scrapbooking projects, wall displays and other crafting ideas. Due to the thickness of the cardboard, it is sometimes tricky to fold, crease or bend the card, unless you use the correct equipment with it.
It is wise to "score" card before folding it - to ensure you get a smooth, straight unrippled fold.
Card can also be referred to using 'mic' instead of gsm. This is a rather simple measuring method, but seems rather pointless and irrelevant to the general crafters in the world. This term is usually used in large paper companies which deal with huge sheets of card and vast amount of it. Mic is short for 'microns'. 1000 microns is equal to 1mm. As you can see, this method is based on the thickness of the card, rather than the weight of it. As card and paper is so thin compared to measurements on a ruler, it seems a bit vague selling card 'measured by the micron'. Microns can usually help when measuring textured card (as it has a raised effect on the material, and may make it easier to determine the depth of a texture within a card).
