Question

Valentine's Day is coming up, so Sweet Dreams chocolate shop is ordering ribbon to decorate gift boxes. Small gift boxes use 20 inches of ribbon, while large ones use 30 inches. Sweet Dreams expects to sell 225 small boxes and 180 large boxes. If the ribbon they use is sold by the yard, how many yards of ribbon should they order?

Answer 1

Answer:

275 yards of ribbon need to be ordered

Step-by-step explanation:

Figure out how much ribbon, in inches, is needed altogether by multiplying the amounts of ribbon by how many boxes are expected to sell for both box sizes:

Small Boxes:

20 in • 225 boxes = 4500 in of ribbon needed

Large Boxes:

30 in • 180 boxes = 5400 in of ribbon needed

Add it up to see how much you need:

4500 + 5400 = 9900 in of ribbon needed in total

There are 36 inches in 1 yard, so divide 9900 by 36 to see how many yards need to be ordered:

9900 ÷ 3 = 275 yards

(Alternatively, you could divide 9900 by 12 inches in a foot to get 825 feet. Then you would divide 825 by 3 feet in a yard to get 275 yards)