The older ones didn't smell. I have two that I've kept for paper crafts and the other half to cut stuff on. They never smelled, but cleaning them took the lines off and I had coffee, glue and other craft stuff all over them.

It must be a new chemical in mfg if Fiskars is smelling, too.

I now use Martelli and they don't smell. I bought the Roundabout one which is NOT made by them and I didn't smell anything. That doesn't mean they won't have an odor in the future, though.

Mine smelled, but it didn't last long. I was just so happy to get a mat and start quilting, I didn't mind.

I guess my question is...do you buy anything else that has an offensive odor, and air it out or wash in some solution before use? Not me......not when there are other choices......jmho

I bought a 24 x 36 Olfa about 9 months ago from my LQS, NEVER had a smell issue.

I have a couple of these: http://calibreart.com/ They are thicker, do not warp like the Olfa and do not smell. (Don't know if they can warp, but they are thicker. My Olfa warped in a not that hot car in a parking garage.)

The factories in China, where most of the mats are made, are heavy on the use of chemicals. The odor penetrates the mats and remains for a long time.

I had to replace my 1990s Fiskars (no odor ever back then) a few years ago and asked on here first for recommendations, and kept reading about the heavy odor. So when I finally decided I wanted an Olfa mat, I ventured to JoAnn and went to the very back mat hanging on the peg. I figured it had been there the longest. I smelled it and it was okay (although I was put off by the ones hanging on the front end. I took off the 7 or 8 in front (must've looked funny to anyone around, but who cares?) --which isn't exactly easy--but then put the mat in my cart, replaced the others on the peg, and drove around the store to test the mat for odor. It was only faint. I brought it home, poured vinegar on it, set ii out in the sunshine for a day or two, and it was fine.

That said, if I had to replace it again, I would certainly look into what yngldy suggested--the Calibre Art ones. Never heard of them, but I trust what I read. It'd be worth the extra money to me, considering you have a mat for a LONG time, so the price difference over years is negligible for the price of your lungs.

I bought my current cutting mat at Walmart a couple of years ago no smell and I believe it cost me 29.99. I really like it because it is 2 sided and has a square up area in the center of it. I have never had a problem with the Olfa cutting mats that I bought in the past with odor, must be something new since I switched brands.

You will never meet anyone more sensitive to smells than me. Something as small as burnt toast makes me nauseous and headachy. I have 4 Olfa mats and 2 Fiskar's mats purchased as long ago as 15 years ago to as recently as last Christmas and none had/have slightest smell. All my mats came from Walmart so I wonder if the fact that they are hung in a large open space for who knows how long helps to get ride of any smell the mat may have.

My DH ordered 2 large Olfa mats for me for Christmas, he got them on Amazon, and neither one had a smell. They were shipped in large thin flat boxes (I know since he wrapped them in the shipping boxes.) I'm another one that can't be around perfume and other chemical type combinations.

I recently bought an Olfa 24 X 36 cutting mat from my LQS, and there has been no problems with odors.