World Wide Quilting Page

Question of the Week

Question for the week of June 21, 1999:

Our question this week comes from Patsy

My large rotary cutting mat was crinkled during a recent move - how can I get it to lay flat again ?

Michelle :
Lay it out in the sun to worm it up and it should lay flat again.

Barbara Dewell :
Place out on a table in the sunshine on a hot day. Weight down the curved center with weights such as pots and pans. You may have to fill the pots and pans with rocks, etc. until the mat lies flat. Hope this works!
Christy :
Try laying it in the sunlight (in front of a south window for example) where it can get warm. Depending on the type of mat you have, you might get the wrinkles out by first warming it up and then putting something heavy on it such as a stack of heavy books to "press" it. You could also try a heat gun but try it on a corner only--if you use one with a variable heat setting, you might be able to warm only the wrinkle in order to again try and press it flat with books or something quite heavy. Good Luck!
Priscilla - diersp@aol.com :
I asked my husband who worked for many years what to do. He said soak it in hot water for about 5-10 mins, then lay it flat to dry. Rubber and or plastic retains it original shape. It should go back to flat automatically unless it has a definite crease. Then, he said to do the above and place extra weight on the crease, when dry, take a some beeswax and a fine soap eraser and go down the crease. This should seal the line. make sure that the eraser is the netural color and also the beeswax. This way, you will not have any color coming off on the fabric.
Robin G. :
I had the exact problem. I put the mat
out on the FLAT patio and
sprinkled water on it and let the sun
bake it flat. It still has a tiny
ripple in one place but other than that
it's perfect.
Aline :
I teach quilting almost every day and every summer, my students have warped mats. Even sunlight through a window will warp the mat. What we have done is tape the mat on to a flat surface - use packaging tape. Then dampen some towels and heat them in the microwave. Place the hot wet towels over the warped area of the mat. The mat should flatten out. The packaging tape should help prevent distortion.

Also, mats left in the cold will crack and break into pieces. The only mats that I have had no problems with are the Carol Taylor mats. All her stuff are worth the extra money.

Paula Burr :
Lay the mat flat out in the sun so it can gently warm the mat. I would check it every 15 minutes or so. It should resume it's shape pretty quickly.
Bobbie from oregon. :
Dampen the mat lightlly with water and then place something heavey on the mast for a cuple of days to weight it down this happend also to my mat. I tried variouse things but this worked the best for me.
suzanne :
has anyone asked the manufacturer if they have a recommended solution to this problem?
Carol V. :
I also had a large green mat that was left in the sun. I could not get anything to work on it, so I cut it apart and made several small mats. These are great placed by the machine, etc.
SAILORTOM-SK1SW@WEBTV.NET :
TRY TO HEAT IT UP IN A FLATEND SPREAD THEN COOL IT DOWN QUICKLY, IT'S A IDEA!
Linda :
I have a mat that was warped from sitting in the sun on a flat surface so I don't think that using heat is the answer. If you find an answer I would like to know. It tells you right on the mat not to place in direct sunlight.
Kay :
Like Sue I have flattened warped mats by
laying them out in the sun. It only takes
a few minutes to flatten out on the drive-
way or patio, on a warm day. I have
successfully flattened both the grey mats
and the green ones this way after they took
a ride in the trunk of my car.
The problem is now they are flat, but
the accuracy of the measurement markings
are slightly off and not as precise as
they were before. The grey one is
especially out of spec. Good luck.
Sara :
Try putting a large pan of water that has been boiled on top of the area that is crinkled. Put a towel under it so that it doesn't burn the mat. Also, I have heard that you can hang the mats in the closet using skirt hangers to keep them straignt, and take up less space.
Sue :
I have flattened a small mat by laying it in the sun until it warms up. Then bring it in an put it on a flat surface to cool. You must however be careful it doesn't get to hot or it will bubble.
Ailene Platt :
I've never tried this, but how about applying heat before weighing it down? like an iron? I don't think direct contact, use a towel or something like that, and apply on the reverse side? If you are moving, store it between 2 matresses/boxspring?
Leslie :
Unfortunately, you might not be able to flatten it again.
I warped a smaller mat just slightly and no matter how much
weight I put on it, it was never totally flat again. Other
quilters I've talked to haven't had success flattening their
mats either, so if there's anyone out there who knows the
secret, a lot of people would be happy to know!

World Wide Quilting Page * Question of the Week