Does anyone know how to get the grooves out of your cutting mat? I hate to buy a new one as they are expensive and I would rather buy fabric :!: The grooves are starting to be a pain in the elbow so I need to do something. Any suggestions would be welcome.

Thanks for bringing up this topic. I have a mat that I have some very deep grooves in too but wish I could make it well again

Is it possible to use the back of the mat? I don't use the grid on mine as they are not that accurate.

Once you've got grooves they are there to stay. The best thing to do is turn your mat over and use the other side. It works great and is something I've done for at least 10 years now. It really extends the life of your cutting mat.

As for the grooves, if you want to avoid grooves the best way is to change your rotary cutting blade frequently. A dull blade means we (yes, I include myself in this!!!) need to push a bit harder and often times that will be the start of a groove. And once the mat has a tiny cut, it'll only get worse over time. They are self-healing but that only goes so far when dealing with a rotary blade. Or at least when dealing with one in my hands! :lol:

There are products to rub over your mat to help with grooves but I've never had much luck with them.

one thing you can do to help keep the cost down is to always use the smallest mat you can for the job. that way, you preserve the largest one. the smallest ones then have to to be replaced most often at the lowest price and the larger ones replaced least often at the highest price.

Ok, I've sanded my with my husband's hand sander. Made it nice and smooth

barnbum had a neat tool that helped clean and smooth out her mat... It was a disc that you rubbed over it...
I don't remember what topic it was in though :roll:

I bought one of those products, and it didn't work.

one vender at a show was giving those away because he couldn't sell them.

Yep, I've had the same experience.

Here is an answer I found on line

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CarolD.../message/48258

Hope this helps

Sounds like that mat has been well used and needs to be replaced.

The mat smoothers are just fine grit sandpaper, that won't do anything. I used a real honing stone and it smoothed out the grooves. The grooves didn't disappear but the cutter no longer snagged going over them. DH had one in his tool box but you can buy one at a mill supply or hardware store. One side will be a smoothing stone and one side will be the honing. Buy the smallest one and use the corner of it to smooth the groves, not hone the whole mat.

I try not to use the same lines on my mat all the time. I'll be buying the Martelli mat when I go to the quilt show in Denver in May. Hopefully it lasts a whole lot longer than all the rest.

oh so true