Hmm. Might be time for a new mat over here. Mine is 20 y/o and has deep fabric eating grooves in it and warped and everything

Please don't start a new quilter out with a Fiskars mat.
They are not really self-healing. They are a hard substance that is a bit slippery on the fabric and will dull blades more quickly than, say, an Olfa mat. New quilters tend to go thru blades more quickly at first so adding to their problems isn't a helpful idea in my opinion. Just because they can be widely found and cheaply bought doesn't, by far, make them a best product.:)

Jan in VA

I find that the smell from the mats that my Joann's sells gives me headaches. I have white mats. No odor. It must be 20+ years old. I did get a new one as a backup since the lines on the old one were getting blurry and the mat is just simply worn out. I flipped it over for a while, but the backside did not have lines. They were expensive...$75, but I got the last one on sale.

I worked once in an industry that used rotary cuts (industry gasket making size) and the huge mats were all hard surface because they kept the blades sharper longer. These blades were expensive to sharpen and very expensive to replace. Hard surface is best for blades. I think if the self healing mats were best for the blades those would have been used. Just my observation.

Havels still has their seven dollar coupon (SAVE7) and they have a self healing mat and rotary cutter for $15.99.
http://www.havelssewing.com/scissor-sets-sale-page.html

Fiskars mats are all I used until very recently. I never had trouble with them although I did wear one out after a few years. I bought a Martelli mat and am using that one now.

Adding that my fiskars mats are all self healing and not hard or slippery. I do have an old Dritz mat that is not self healing and it is very slippery and I hate it.

I have the grey Fiskars rotating mat and it stinks. I don't know if it was a manufacturing process or not but it is really grooved compared to the green Fiskars mats I own. It's almost like the finish is too soft for rotary cutting. It leaves lots of little grey pebbles on the mat and the blade. And yes I use the fiskars blades. I would not recommend it at all.

I have a 24" x 36" & I love it. The one I had before this one was also a Fiskars & used it for years. Still would be using it but it has a ripple on the long edge so a pain to use. That was my own fault. I've had good luck with them & would buy them again.

I've had my gray Fiskars mats for about 15 years I do take good care of them and flip them every now and then. I would love to have the Omni grid mat but they don't fit my cutting surface, so will continue to use what I have.