Can't live without it- part 2

Last night I was sewing and thinking about the project I was making. While I was trying to sew and still be in the same room with my daughter yesterday, I moved my sewing machine to the living room on our card table. Of course I missed the space of using our kitchen table where everything can be laid out and also the stability of the kitchen table. The sewing machine would vibrate the card table and so Madalynn thought that she could also shake the table. My machine almost fell over on me. Then she was fascinated with the foot pedal and I had to turn of the machine for almost an hour while she played with it. Ah...I love my little curious 14 month old daughter. She is a lot of fun.

When Russ got home I was just ready to lay out my project and sew the whole top together. So, I moved back into the kitchen and got started. As I was thinking about the whole process from cutting to sewing to finishing the top I realized that I really can't live without my cutting mat. It is a full size table mat. When I was using my cutting mat that is small enough to travel with I was not ever as perfect with my cuts as I am when I can just lay the whole thing out on a big mat to cut. When i am going to friends houses or my in-laws cabin I only ever take projects that are already cut or only use small portions of fabric so I can handle using my small mat.

Unfortunately when I first bought it two and half years ago it was on a folding table just a little too small for it and so it has a couple breaks. It also incurred some damage in our many moves, but really it is heaven. I can't wait until someday when I have a permanent craft room that I can attach it to a table that is the perfect size and never have to move it again. When I was cutting used jeans for a project I could lay the entire pair of jeans on the table and just walk around the table to work on it. On a small cutting mat you constantly have to be moving an shifting everything to get it placed to measure and cut.

I put all my projects on it. I use a lint brush to clean it every day. It is my guide for everything that I measure because it is a ruler just handy and out in the house. I bought it at JoAnn's for like $15 dollars on a sale. I think that it is usually around $70. So, if you are in the need for a big mat, just wait until around Thanksgiving or Christmas. It was on sale then and it was cheaper than the omingrid or friskars cutting mats. Here is a picture. It is cluttered with my current three projects but I don't think that removing everything to take a picture would show the justice of its use. The mat is 58" by 33".Hope that you enjoyed.