cutting matts

[shadoh]

i cut the cutting matts, the cuts fill with fabric. is this normal?
is this because of too much pressure, dull blades? defective matts..hah? or just me?? i need a new one, which is best? thanks for replying......from..a new quiltaholic.

[knitnoid]

if you are making cuts into the mat which are filing with fabric, start by changing your blade. A new blade will reduce the amount of preasure you have to use as well.

As for mats, I prefere the green Olfa mats. I've got one of the gray June Tailor mats that flips over and is a pressing board on the other side and I don't like the way the cutter feels when I cut on that board.

Having said that, what works for me, may not work for you (or others).

[gmaann]

I agree that if your mat is getting fabric in it when you cut that it means you need a new, sharp blade. Try that first, anyway. Sometimes, cutting things that require a little more pressure (like batting or flannel) can tend to leave some residue. I, too, prefer the green Olfa mats, though I have used others with good results.

[mamaw]

I agree with first changing the blade. Also, Olfa is the only way to go with cutting mats....they are wonderful!

[Cathy32078]

I agree wiht the other ladies here. I take a sticky roller for lint removal or a pc of real sticky tape and remove pcs of lint, thread, fabric from my mat from time to time. My green Olfa mat self heals well after I carefully clean it.

Hugs & Love

[sewbug]

The hard surface mats like June Taylor's, the blade rolls on the mat and not cutting into the mat. At some point all self healing mats will become too 'healed' to use. I have all brands, Fiskers, Olfa, Polar, and June Taylor. I think Olfa is too soft a mat. I use June Taylor for most of my cutting but the mat that came with the Alto Quilt Cut system is the best I have used.

[grammiequilts]

I have seen a mat cleaner some where has any one tried it?

[sewbug]

I have a round honing stone I use to clean and resurface the mat that has lots of cuts and lint built up. One side is a smoothing stone that works great. You can find them at a mill supply house or a good hardware store. It is about 4" round. Your DH may have one in his toolbox! That's where I found mine.

[sewcarolyn]

oh I just got instructions from the Olfa dealer at the Quilt show. They gave out "how to clean instructions" I will see if I can find them.

here is how to clean fleece from the olfa site "Fleece fibers are naturally attracted to your self-healing rotary mat. To remove the fuzz, simply brush with a soft brush such as a toothbrush or mushroom brush or an art gum eraser found at your local artist supply store. These methods will pull the fibers out of the mat without leaving any residue"

but they gave directions to wash them I will post it here when I find it

[tnwaltz1]

The rotary cutter and the mat are the greatest thing since slicedbread as they say. But, they do have some reservations. One is using them tocut fleece. It does stick, but I have found make sure yoou have a sharp blade or maybe a new one for this project. I worked in a fabric store and learned that fleece is a polyester and tough on cutting tools. Whenever we had a big sale on fleece and did a lot of cutting it, we all needed our scissors sharpened.
I clean my mat with a brush like what you would use to clean veggies. Also in a pinch I used a crunched up bag from onions, something like a pot scrubber. That works too.
Another tip is using the rotary blade for ther than cutting quilt strips. Yes I have actually cut clothing patterns with it. A man at the same store where I worked was an excellent sewer and all round smart guy. He leared to sew from his grandma. He told me about using the rotary cutter for this purpose. I wanted to prove him wrong but it can be done, and with the regular 45mm. Give it a try yooou will be surprised how quick cutting out a pattercan be.