This thread reminded me I bought a stabilizer gadget (doo-dad?) at a quilt show I forgot I even have, but the
Big-Mat Stabilizer is placed beside your ruler and the ruler will not budge. He didn't put his information on the package, I'm sure I got his card but you know what it's like when you attend a quilt show! Anyhow I think I found a picture of it here:
http://thoughtfulthimble.com/big-mat-store.html
It's that little blue thing in the pictures. Sold individually about the 7th picture down on the right. Your ruler will not budge when it's on the mat, so perhaps you can leave your fingers further away from where you are cutting.
He's got patent pending on it and has been selling his products at quilt shows for years, he says he invented a cutting mat before Ofla and his mats used to have a lifetime guarantee. He says he may change that this year as one woman traded in one she had for 40 years, lol! He said he used to sell at Annie's Attic and named a few other places too that I can't remember, but does not sell in stores. Anyway, the mats were 20% cheaper at the quilt show. He showed me how his eraser really does smooth out the cuts on the mat.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JIz7CaV6-r8
I wish I had bought a kit... but I digress.
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I just wanted to show you a picture of the doo-dad aka stabilizer.