College Ruled Lined Paper Views

Office Products & Supplies

College-ruled paper has horizontal lines spaced 7.1 mm apart. Lines are wider than narrow-ruled paper and narrower than wide-ruled paper. Usually purchased either in loose-leaf or spiral-bound notebook forms, the paper typically has holes punched so that the pages will fit in a three-ring binder. You can make homemade college-ruled paper with your home computer and printer, or you can create a paper template to use in a photocopier. Customize the paper weight, color, and type, and design the size and placement of the holes to fit any binder.

Secure the college-ruled paper to the light box or a bright window using transparent tape. If you want a template for over-sized college-ruled paper, tape up several sheets, lining up the ruled lines to ensure your template lines will also be straight. You may need to overlap the college-ruled paper in places to achieve a large enough area of lined paper.

Center your plain white paper over the top of the college-ruled paper. Use the T-square to ensure that the margins of the paper are square. Align the top of the T along a side of the white paper and check the long leg of the tool against one of the lines printed on the college-ruled paper. Adjust your white paper until the lines match up with the edge of the paper. Tape the white paper in place with transparent tape.

Draw a margin line at right angles to the blue lines using the red pen, if desired. Use the T-square to make sure it is square to the lines. Standard college-ruled paper has a red margin line at 1-1/4 (31.75 mm) from the left margin, but you may wish to put your margin line at a different placement if your college-ruled paper will be larger or smaller than standard notebook paper.