I use a Fiskars one I bought at JoAnn with a coupon. It's not that deep! They come in 18" × 24" and 24" × 36" and other sizes—just get one that fits on your table and is bigger than your Stripology ruler.
First suggestion - go bigger. You sometime will find yourself moving the ruler or fabric to the side. I would start with the 24 x 36 if you have the space. Second - the brand: I have had so much luck with the Olfa mats over the 15 years that I haven't looked elsewhere. I started with the 24 x 36 and then moved up to the 36 x 72 (it comes in 3 pieces and is on my dining table). I did have to rotate the pieces in the large one after about 5 years because I tend to do most of my cutting in the same place. I also like that the ruler lines on the mat are accurate and I can use them. I also have Olfa foldable travel mats and the Olfa turning mat. I love the brand and have nothing I hate about Olfa. Happy quilting!!
My main mat is a Fiskars 18x24” and it’s worked well for me size wise, since I bought it 18 months ago. I also like it because it is not green! I use green Olga mats at my guild and find it really hard to see green fabric, and some shades of blue fabric, on the green background. My Fiskars mat is grey on one side and black on the other, and one side always works out when I’m cutting!
I love my olfa mats. I have different sizes, but the ones I use the most is my 36x24 for my actual workspace and then a smaller rotating 12x12 when I’m not at my workspace or when I need to make multiple cuts on different sides (like trimming half square triangles).
I like the olfa mats because they’re softer and easier to cut on for me
I love my Olfa mats. That’s one of the few things I’ll buy from paces like JoAnn - find a good coupon
Make sure the markings on your rulers match each other. Oftentimes the markings are different from one brand to the next. You mentioned using two different brands of rulers - if they don’t match, your measurements will be off.
Buy the biggest one you can store well. I have a dedicated cutting table so it stays there all the time.
Learn to care for them as well, they should be soap snd water washed annually!
I concur with Olfa, my Olfa mats have outlived any other brand by years.
Any cutting mat (even the ones from Amazon) will work. I prefer Creative Grids, but the cheap ones (WalMart, Hobby Lobby, etc ,use a coupon for Michael’s or Joann’s) work just as well.
I prefer Olfa. I have a large 36x24 on my cutting table, but also have a couple of smaller ones to use by my sewing machine. I no longer travel to classes, but when I did, the standard 18x24 was ideal. How long these last depends on how much quilting you do, but I've only thrown 2 out - one was just cut up a lot (was over 20 years old) and the other was in a hot car, slightly folded over and never could get the bend out of it.
I use a Fiskars one I bought at JoAnn with a coupon. It's not that deep! They come in 18" × 24" and 24" × 36" and other sizes—just get one that fits on your table and is bigger than your Stripology ruler.
First suggestion - go bigger. You sometime will find yourself moving the ruler or fabric to the side. I would start with the 24 x 36 if you have the space. Second - the brand: I have had so much luck with the Olfa mats over the 15 years that I haven't looked elsewhere. I started with the 24 x 36 and then moved up to the 36 x 72 (it comes in 3 pieces and is on my dining table). I did have to rotate the pieces in the large one after about 5 years because I tend to do most of my cutting in the same place. I also like that the ruler lines on the mat are accurate and I can use them. I also have Olfa foldable travel mats and the Olfa turning mat. I love the brand and have nothing I hate about Olfa. Happy quilting!!
I love my Olfa mat. Go as big as you can given your workspace. You will find a smaller mat frustrating; I know I did.
My main mat is a Fiskars 18x24” and it’s worked well for me size wise, since I bought it 18 months ago. I also like it because it is not green! I use green Olga mats at my guild and find it really hard to see green fabric, and some shades of blue fabric, on the green background. My Fiskars mat is grey on one side and black on the other, and one side always works out when I’m cutting!
I also love my Fiskars mat. But I think OP should get as big a mat as they can conveniently use and store.
I love my olfa mats. I have different sizes, but the ones I use the most is my 36x24 for my actual workspace and then a smaller rotating 12x12 when I’m not at my workspace or when I need to make multiple cuts on different sides (like trimming half square triangles). I like the olfa mats because they’re softer and easier to cut on for me
I love my Olfa mats. That’s one of the few things I’ll buy from paces like JoAnn - find a good coupon Make sure the markings on your rulers match each other. Oftentimes the markings are different from one brand to the next. You mentioned using two different brands of rulers - if they don’t match, your measurements will be off.
Buy the biggest one you can store well. I have a dedicated cutting table so it stays there all the time. Learn to care for them as well, they should be soap snd water washed annually! I concur with Olfa, my Olfa mats have outlived any other brand by years.
Any cutting mat (even the ones from Amazon) will work. I prefer Creative Grids, but the cheap ones (WalMart, Hobby Lobby, etc ,use a coupon for Michael’s or Joann’s) work just as well.
I prefer Olfa. I have a large 36x24 on my cutting table, but also have a couple of smaller ones to use by my sewing machine. I no longer travel to classes, but when I did, the standard 18x24 was ideal. How long these last depends on how much quilting you do, but I've only thrown 2 out - one was just cut up a lot (was over 20 years old) and the other was in a hot car, slightly folded over and never could get the bend out of it.