A dull blade is the most common cause of rotary blade accidents. Dull blades will encourage you to press harder into the mat, degrading it and increasing the likelihood that your hand will slide and injure you. Furthermore, rotary blades are expensive; why throw them out when you can sharpen them and restore them to near-new condition?
Even if you don't have a sharpener, you can sharpen your blade by folding up some aluminium foil and cutting it with the sharpening blade. Do this in between tasks to keep your blade sharp! Excellent method for wavy rotary blades. It is thought that cutting aluminium foil with scissors sharpens them as well.
Have a drawer full of fancy slick rulers? Don't worry, you only need a handful of special transparent non-slip stickers to have your own arsenal of non-stick measurement tools! TrueGrips Non-Slip Adhesive Rings or Omnigrid InvisiGrip are two examples of specialty products that can be purchased locally or online. If you already have a transparent first aid tape on hand, such as Nexcare Flexible Clear Glue, you may tape strips to the back of your rulers to build your own DIY non-slip rulers!
Mats, like our beautiful skin, adore wetness! Who would have guessed? Skip the creams and instead soak your mat in the tub. To revitalise your mat, soak it in a solution of 14 cup vinegar per gallon of cool, room temperature water. Allow the arithmetic to soak for 15-20 minutes before cleaning with a light brush and a few squirts of moderate dishwashing soap to remove any sticky fibres or markings on the mat. Rinse the mat in cool water and pat dry or air dry Flat to prevent warping. A moistened mat is a softer mat, which means your rotary blades will last longer.
Cutting mats that self-heal operate by 'absorbing' the cut from a blade. The mat is made up of many microscopic particles that are pushed together to form a solid surface that is not rigid like glass or hard plastic, allowing the blade's 'cut' to be absorbed among the particles.
When you run a blade over the same spot on a self-healing mat, the harm gets more evident as the cut has a greater impact each time. Little fibres get stuck in the cuts, and you'll have to replace the mat eventually.
We use a cutting board with knives, however the board gets all kinds of scrapes and scratches from the knife. A self-healing mat serves the same purpose as a regular mat in that it protects the table or countertop from the sharp rotary blade, but it is specially designed to withstand cuts and scratches to its surface, allowing it to stay smoother for longer. To remove fuzz and maintain the surface fresh, clean your mat with room temperature water, a few drops of dish/ Castile/ OnGuard soap, and a soft bristle brush on a regular basis.
This leads us back to my narrative about discovering rotary cutters (panicked quilters, you can rejoin us now). Do you have any knowledge of metal art rulers? They're tiny, narrow, and completely unsuitable for the three functions of a rotating ruler that I just told you. But isn't ignorance bliss? Isn't it all fun and games until someone bleeds? Something like that. That's exactly how it is. My best friend had come over, and we were chatting and maybe snacking while I sliced away at a pile of t-shirts. It was ideal. Until that little little ruler let me down. My cutting hand shook, and the scapel-sharp blade jumped right over the ruler's edge and into my fingertip.
To cut straight, square pieces of fabric for your crafts, use a self-healing cutting mat and ruler in conjunction with your rotary cutter. Consider the cutting mat and rotary cutting ruler to be carpentry squares that you use to get straight lines. Straight lines = precise measurements = lovely projects. These are absolutely essential quilting equipment!
If you have a huge piece of fabric, you may require assistance. I frequently solicit my husband's assistance in folding and preparing sections that are more than 4-5 yards long. He's actually gotten fairly good at it! Even for "helpers," this becomes simpler with time and experience. It's also another reason to form a sewing group!
Precision in preparation is essential for getting accurate cuts. Straight up and down your chosen vertical line, as well as along a horizontal line towards the bottom border of the cutting mat. This will ensure that your cut is absolutely straight and square, rather than "wonky." Take note of how the ruler is perfectly placed on the mat's horizontal and vertical grid lines.
Place the rotary blade along the ruler's edge, a few inches below the fabric's bottom edge. Push firmly down on the rotary ruler and fabric while sliding the rotary cutter up along the cutting edge until it is just above the top edge of your fabric.
You must apply sufficient pressure to your rotary ruler and fabric so that it does not slip during cutting. Keep your non-dominant, ruler-holding hand's fingers a few inches back and away from the ruler's edge and the rotary cutter's blade! Those fingers are essential!