How to Make Cricut Cutting Mats Resticky

Originally posted this on June 18th, 2008, but I wanted to bring this back up to the top for all my cricut friends!

Along with many Cricut users, I am fed up with the Cricut cutting mats / pads. They don't stay sticky for any decent amount of time. I think that this is rediculous because we pay HUNDREDS (Some of us even spend THOUSANDS) of dollars to their company so they should at least figure out a better way! Buying cutting mats all the time adds up!

So to counter this problem, many scrappers have come up with different methods of making the mats last longer or making them sticky again.

These are the ways I have read about so far:

*Using a lint roller -roll the lint roller back and forth over the cutting pad to get all the paper pieces and paper fuzzies off the mat. I didn't notice a difference with this method.

*Rotating cutting pads -use 2 or 3 cutting pads at a time, rotating which one you cut on. This does help some, but eventually they still lose the sticky.

*Spray the mat with adhesive -this is what we are going to concentrate on!

After many attempts, I have learned a lot of what not to do and I found a way that works!

I attempted to wash mine with soap and water, which helped a little bit but the mats were definitely NOT as sticky as the original mats.

The lint roller helps to get the little paper lint off, but didn't make the mat any more sticky.

I ALWAYS rotate cutting mats! I don't really see a difference if I am only cutting out a couple of pieces, but I definitely notice the difference when I am working on a big project. I rotate with six mats. I alternate two at a time and then switch to another two after a little while. I find that this extends them for a lot longer.

And finally, the number one best method I have found is adhesive spray!!! Here are a few tips and tricks to get the best out of it.

1. Use Krylon Easy-Tack Repositionable Spray #7020. I tried a few other sprays with no luck. They either didn't stick enough or stuck too much and messed up the paper. The Krylon spray makes the mats stick the same as when they are new! This stuff is AMAZING!!! This comes in the bottle shown below:

This spray needs to be sprayed outside where you have ventilation and away from children and pets. In my local scrapbooking store, this spray was in the isle with the wood glues and NOT with the scrapbooking glues so ask someone if you cant find it. At the store here, it costs $5.99 and lasts a long time. One bottle should last many, many months.

2. Tape off the edges of your mat. This is critical because the glue will get on the roller thing in your machine. I found taping of the mats to be tedious so I made a mat template out of cardboard and I lay it on top of my mat, align it with the mat and spray.

3. Spray lightly. I found that if you put on too much spray, it takes forever to dry.

4. Wait a couple minutes. If you spray and then stick the paper on immediately, it wont stick! The adhesive actually has to dry before it becomes sticky.

******Note: I recommend only using the spray method AFTER your warranty is up because doing this can void your warranty. Good luck saving your mats and your money!

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