When cutting fabric, iron the fabric first to get any wrinkles and creases out of it, as these could cause issues when cutting and cause the material to not stick as well to the mat and lift during cutting.
The Brayer is also a great tool for smoothing out fabric on the mat and ensuring that all the fabric is flat and in complete contact with the mat for a clean cut.
If cutting a lot of fabric, the mats will need to be cleaned after several uses. If you notice that the fabric isn’t adhering well or is moving during a cut, this is an indication that the mat needs to be cleaned.
To clean the mat simply use warm water and gentle dish soap. Wet the mat and use your hands with some dish soap, moving your hand in a circular motion to remove fabric fibers from the mat. Rinse off and let dry flat. Once completely dry, the mat is ready to be used again.
Baby wipes can also be used to clean your mats.
A lint roller can be used to remove dirt and debris from a mat.
Never use the scraper on your fabric grip mats. The adhesive is different than the light, standard, and strong grip mats and the scraper could remove the adhesive from the fabric grip mat.
Don’t place fabric designs at the edge of the mat or material, as the rotary blade could drag the material that is at the edge of the mat if design is too close to the edge.
Fabric should be cut to the size of the tacky surface of the mat, as fabric that extends past the tacky area could get caught on the pinchwheels or rotary blade and could cause issues with your cut or machine.
If needed, you can use a hand rotary cutter to cut down fabric on the mat, just be careful to not apply too much pressure to damage your mat
The Rotary blade will need to be replaced more often than a basic blade. If you are going to be doing a lot of fabric cutting and notice that the cuts aren’t as clean as they were previously or that the blade is skipping spots and not cutting the entire design, this could be an indication that it is time to replace your blade.
Replacing the blades is easy with our Rotary Blade Replacements. We have a video on our YouTube channel or here is a link to the instructions.
How to replace the Rotary Blade?
If you notice that your blade is leaving deep marks in your mat, you may be using too much force and need to reduce the force for the fabric you are cutting. The right force would be the least amount of force necessary to completely cut your fabric or material but not too much that it damages your mat.
Cutting too deep into the mat could also cause some of the mat's tack to get on the blade and this could also affect your cuts and could cause the fabric to stick to the blade or the blade to lift the fabric when cutting. Check your blade to confirm if any of the tack is on it and if needed carefully clean the blade to remove the tack. Also, fabric might build up by the blades screw and you can remove that as well and any strings or fabric fibers that might be stuck to the blade
When cutting cotton, the fabric can fray at the edges, it typically isn’t enough to interfere with your project or design, but if you want to help reduce these, try using a tighter weave of cotton or the spatula is a great tool to lift fabric off the mat.
Place fabric right side up when cutting. The only time to place fabric right side down would be if you are using one of the fabric markers to draw seam lines. Then you would place the fabric right side down and then be sure to remember to mirror your image.
Be careful of the size of design being cut, as very small or intricate cuts could cause damage to your mat or material as too sharp or tight of a turn could cause the blade to dig into the mat or drag your fabric.
