I did not read all these posts but would those suction cup handles be any good? I have been thinking of getting some.

i find it only helps to pick up the ruler, not to keep it from slipping.

do the olfa blades fit the martelli rotary cutter?

Invisgrip works great. It really helped me a lot. I now use it on the back of all of my rulers. I also got one of those suction cup handles to put on my ruler which also seemed to improve things a lot. Are you "walking your hand " up the length of the ruler as you cut? That, too, seemed to help me a lot. I had exactly the same problem you are having. Believer me, all of a sudden one day you will have just practiced often enough and it will happen. In the meantime, cut slowly!!

They fit but don't use them. The Martelli blades have a round hole in them, the Olfa blades have little notches around the hole. Those notches will cut through the screw that holds the blade in place. Which is not a good thing at all..... you then have to replace the screw. (Yes, I am speaking from experience here.....)
Love my Martelli cutters, and the blades seem to last a bit longer than the Olfa ones. At least for me.

Have fun,
Pati, in Phx

I recently splurged and bought a gadget called "The Original Gypsy Gripper". It is one of my pricier gadgets for quilting but I wish I had it long ago because it really holds my rulers firmly in place with NO slipping. Here is the web site -- I didn't understand about clicking the browser button. Guess I have to learn the computer as well as the quilting! Hope this explains what it is. Just copy and paste into the thing (you know what that is!)

thegypsyquilter.com

Wait! Don't give up. Those little round sandpaper things are great! They worked for me. Also, watch how you hold your rotary cutter. I keep my index finger on the top of my cutter--that seems to work for me. Good luck and don't give up.. Just walk away from it for a few minutes but don't let it get the best ofyou. YOU can do this!

I wrote about the Gypsy Gripper which keeps the ruler from moving but it raises your hand so that the blade can't reach your fingers and cut you.

I consficated a magnesium "mag" concrete float from my husband and use it to hold the ruler in place instead of trying to hold it by hand. A mag float is the thingee used to smooth and level concrete once it is poured. It is light weight and rectangular shaped with a large handle. It takes less pressure and works better for me.

Oh Yea! I know what that is and would work great. Great Idea!

[quote=BellaBoo]Hello Ida,
I use this on all my rulers and it works great.

http://www.quiltinaday.com/shoponlin...lay.asp?i=1883 quote]

I bought some of this stuff at Joann's and put it on a couple of my most problematic rulers. It comes in a role, like waxed paper. And lo and behold! no more trouble with slipping. Now I recommend it to everyone.
The other thing I have used is those little round sandpaper spots. They work well, but I have to use quite a few of them on the longer rulers. 8-)

Ditto!

8-)

My absolute favourite gadget is my Rule Steady, - it makes cutting so much easier. It's an Australian product that I bought here in the UK and I have seen it reviewed in various US magazines.

Not familiar with that. Could you post a pic?

I use http://www.joann.com/images/38/60/6/xprd386065_m.jpg. Same concept I think.

Definitely try to only press as hard as you need to to get a successful cut all the way through. Extra weight on that blade will wear it faster.

I use this and it does help with pressure and adds to safety factor!
http://www.joann.com/joann/catalog/p...ID=xprd1130656

I use sand paper dots, which work great

Ya beat me to it! Good thing I read the 6 previous pages of posts. The nice thing about the rubber cement is it dries clear in minutes. Yes, it does collect threads, but it is easily removed by rolling off the cement with your fingers.

[QUOTE=QKO;1374101]I had a lot of trouble with that when I started cutting, as well. The basic problem, at least for me, was technique. I had to practice a lot with keeping the cutter blade totally vertical, and lined up perfectly with the ruler. The problem I (and I suspect most people) had with moving the ruler was canting the cutter in against the ruler, like this /| while the blade should be straight with the ruler, like this || as well as being perfectly vertical. When I switched to a Martelli Ergo cutter it helped a lot too, as it eliminated the "flop" in the cutter.

Sometimes I just wonder where I've been. I've never heard this advice, and it makes so much sense. I love my Martelli cutter and now I know how to use it better. Thanks