Countless times, we've been shopping for home improvement projects and found ourselves without one very helpful tool: A measuring tape. Whether you're checking out refrigerators in a showroom or figuring out if a toilet's depth will fit a small bathroom, having a tape measure on hand can make or break a shopping trip.
It doesn't have to be anything fancy. I carry a flexible tape that rolls up into about a 1.5" disc (much like the ones pictured up top, available for $15 from Amazon). It fits easily in my purse and measures only about 60", which is enough for most out-and-about purposes. Another idea for an easy-to-bring-along tape measure to keep on your body when going through a renovation: the paper tape measures given out at IKEA.
Do you carry a tape measure with you? What are your tips for remembering it or for making it convenient to keep on you at all times?
Image: Amazon
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There's always one in my bag and another one in the car, and whenever I ask to borrow one from store employees they're happy to oblige.
Beside the tape measure which is always in my bag, make sure to have a pen too. Paper can be easier to find on the spur of the moment, but a pen is impossible to find.
normally always in my bag and I have the "My Measures" app on my phone to keep a record of the sizes of all the nooks in my home.
I carry a small measuring tape in my purse, and a paper one from ReStore in my wallet. I also keep a SpacePen in my wallet and a small notepad in my purse, but I've been known to jot measurements down on my iPhone if I find myself paper-less.
these are crucial if you shop at thrift stores and flea markets
I have one of the IKEA paper tapes folded up in my wallet. I've had the same one for at least 4 years. Very handy to have.
I always have a measuring tape in my purse but it's not a nice neatly rolled one... it's the sewing kind and it's all kinked and tries to poke out of my purse. I use it more for sewing reasons but my husband has been known to ask for it while we are in the hardware store.
It's in my car!
I've been carrying a folded IKEA paper tape in my wallet for years, too. During the reno I always had a regular measuring tape with me, you don't want to have to whip out a one-yard paper tape when measuring 12ft moldings. Like Miami's Elaine, I also found that all store employees are happy to locate an provide one as well.
I have been carrying one with me in my purse wherever I go these days. I have this 10ft $5 one from the container store. Also in hindsight I wish I had taken a few of those IKEA paper tapes with me so I could lay out where larger pieces of furniture will go on the floor. I've been cutting up pieces of 8.5x11 paper and taping them to the floor, but that is a lot of work.
http://www.containerstore.com/shop?productId=10026239&N=&Ntt=tape+measure
I have a mini measuring tape on my keychain. It cost like a buck at sears and I love it! It's so handy.
@AnnabelVita -
Just looked up that 'My Measures' app, I love it!
I carry the Ikea paper tape myself, too.
Otherwise, if I am caught without it, I ask the staff - most stores have measuring tapes handy.
The keychain measuring tape is priceless.
For small approximate measurements, I find my finger spread (jazz hands, from tip of pinkie to tip of thumb) useful. For most people it's 7 - 8 inches. And I get the small retractable measuring tapes all the time from the company that makes our corporate promo materials (for free!). I have them stashed everywhere: several purses, the glove compartments in both cars, junk drawer in the kitchen, etc.
These days, most of my unexpected measuring happens at HomeDepot or Lowe's.... so I just borrow a tape measure from another part of the store.
In a real pinch, a standard piece of paper is easy to find and predictably sized at 8.5"x11".
For a long time, I carried my keychain measuring tape and, in the back of my datebook, a list of the measurements of various spaces in my apartment, so I could always be sure my new find would fit in the space I had in mind.