Does anyone have tip to refresh a self-healing cutting mat? I was cutting quite a few strips for my first quilt project and I can feel ridges on it. I really didn't get any instructions with on the care and feeding of mat. Hope someone can help.
They sell a gadget you rub over your mat which is a very gentle sand paper. I'm pretty sure I got mine thru Keepsake Quilting, but it was a long time ago. It takes off the nubs. Of course, if we didn't use worn out blades this wouldn't be so much of a problem! Dull blades are very bad for your mat. You can buy sharpeners for your blades too. If you keep your blades sharp, your mat should last a very long time. I've had mine close to 20 years now.
I also have a well-used cutting mat. I had no problems until I tried cutting lots of quilt fabric with a dull cutter. It left lines in the mat the color of the fabrics. I realized that it was little threads from the fabric preventing the mat from 'healing'. I read the tips, including the description of the gadget that was 'like fine sandpaper'.
To clean the fabric "whiskers" from my rotary cutting mat, I DRY-scrub it with a "greenie", which is really designed for scrubbing dishes. (It reminds me of A/C filter material.)
There is a TRICK to removing ALL of the fabric particles from the cuts in the mat. I just gently bend the cutting mat over the edge of the table or over a coffee can. This opens the cuts, and the greenie grabs the fuzzies out.
From Kathryn Kistner in Texas, who's now saying,
"It's only a TRICK until you discover the SECRET."
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My mat for rotary cutting has grooves worn into it. Can these be repaired?
By Nancy
