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Hi there I am after some advice regarding the best thing to use to protect the work table but also to do stamping on that will also be easy to clean. Any ideas or advice?? I have seen Tim Holtz use a brownish mat in some of the videos I have seen but am not sure what he is using. Thanks in advance.
Sabine
I know a lot of people use a silicone mat. In the craft section of the store, it is called a "craft mat." In the cooking section, it is a "sheet pan liner." In the sewing section, it is an "applique mat." It's just a silicone sheet. Being frugal (cheap!) I use parchment paper. It does pretty much the same thing. I can paint on it, stamp on it, etc. and it wipes clean. If it really gets messed up, I throw it out. It's a non-stick surface, just like the silicone mat.
__________________ Debbie "Make it work, people." - Tim Gunn My Gallery
Thanks guys for the great and really quick advice. I am going to see if I can find something here in Hong Kong otherwise I'll have to do an overseas order from somewhere! I might try our version of the dollar shop and see what they have going cheap to try at first!
Sabine
I saw some nice large mats that were self healing at Walmart over the weekend. They were Fiskars brand and i loved the gray and white color. I was tempted to buy it but I already have two large ones.
Blessings.
Thanks guys for the great and really quick advice. I am going to see if I can find something here in Hong Kong otherwise I'll have to do an overseas order from somewhere! I might try our version of the dollar shop and see what they have going cheap to try at first!
Sabine
See if there are any plastic place mats. I used those for quite a while before I got one of Tim's sheets and a self-healing mat. Wipes clean easily and you don't feel too guilty when it finally gets messed up enough to no longer be useful and you have to toss it...
I have a self healing mat on one section of my desk and a teflon sheet on the other. I have always just worked with cardstock protecting my work surface, but I love love love this setup. The teflon sheet is like a larger palette for paint and other wet mess or mixing, and cleans up so easily.
The teflon sheet is set up where I do my video tutorials (foreground of the picture below). I bought an off brand on Amazon for about $5.
You can almost see the self-healing mat on the other side! It's 18" x 24."
See if there are any plastic place mats. I used those for quite a while before I got one of Tim's sheets and a self-healing mat. Wipes clean easily and you don't feel too guilty when it finally gets messed up enough to no longer be useful and you have to toss it...
That's a great idea!
__________________ Debbie "Make it work, people." - Tim Gunn My Gallery
I use the tim holtz mat, splurged on it many years ago and I mean splurged as I had to get from America so with postage it wasnt cheap BUT its been the best buy I have made. It rolls up to travel with me when Im away and otherwise its there for all things. Only thing I dont do on it is cut, have a self healing mat for that. Glues, paints, alchohol inks, inks, hot glue everything just wipes off so easy.
I have a self healing mat, bought from an artstore, for cutting on. Some people prefer glass mats. Worth looking in pound/dollar stores for these, in the baking section- same thing, cheaper than the 'craft' version. Also the Inkessentials craft sheet- I got mine from a poundstore-a heatproof baking sheet.Depends what technique you are doing, if you are putting ink down to mist than dip/drag cardstock in, the baking sheet is brilliant. If I'm just sponging inks onto card,or brayering, I use an A3 artist pad to work on, then I get a nice inky sheet of paper to use for backgrounds too after a while!
Thanks for the advice. I have decided since I am using my dining room table as my craft table, I am going to go to Ikea and buy their vinyl covered fabric which is on sale at the moment and use it as a table protector and I saw that they also have silicone baking sheets and I think then I will be good to go and it is cheaper than just buying the Tim Holtz mat. Here in Hong Kong I have priced it all and I can get everything in Ikea for less than the one small mat, so to start with as I am a beginner I will do it this way. I can always upgrade later if I feel like it!
Good call, biene. Its amazing how much you can save by looking around and finding replacement things, instead of buying the branded 'craft' items. Trouble is, IKEA is addictive, lol. Bet you come out with more than you went in for,
LOL! I'll let you know. I am also looking for a way to store my paper, so I have no doubt I will be looking at more than just the fabric and the silicone mats!
I am also in the '...self healing mat on one section of my desk and a teflon sheet on the other' group.' I tried using just the craft/teflon sheet, but it didn't give me enough cushion for my stamping and I stamp a lot, so I added a 24" x 36" 'Creative Mark' Self-healing artist cutting mat and this combination 'has me covered' no matter what techniques or products my project calls for (outside of soldering or anything that involves a torch LOLLLLLLLLL).
I'm a messy crafter and I like having everything I'm using out while I'm working so I need a lot of elbow room or I start knocking stuff off the work area and onto the floor and that gets me frustrated and zaps the creative joy from whatever I'm making, so I had to nip that in the bud.
HTH.
__________________ "May your mind whirl joyful cartwheels of creativity." - Jonathan Lockwood Huie.
Last edited by QueenOfInkland; 06-29-2014 at 06:30 AM..
LOL! I'll let you know. I am also looking for a way to store my paper, so I have no doubt I will be looking at more than just the fabric and the silicone mats!
If you are only using A4 size paper, you could cut down cereal boxes to mimic magazine storage boxes and cover them with pretty paper/stamped paper you've made. The storage boxes can be stored upright or flat.
New pizza boxes work well for the traditional 12"X12" size (not sure what size that is in Japan).
Teflon oven liners are also an alternative to Tim Holtz's craft sheet. The Teflon coated sheets have the advantage of also being heat resistant so you can drop hot glue on them without damage, heat emboss directly on them as well as clean up paint and ink easily. About the only thing you cannot do on them is cut stuff because they are not self-healing.
Have fun at Ikea. Wish we had one here.
Rainsong
__________________ Those who can make you believe absurdities, can make you commit atrocities. Voltaire
Best craft mat EVER is by Imagine Crafts. Clean it with a baby wipe, no staining..even StazOn wipes right off. You don't want to use it as a cutting surface, but for messy crafting...this is the way to go. Craft Mat 15"X18"-Blue at Joann.com
After a college function some years ago I was left with a pile of laminated placemats that had been created by students as a way of showcasing some of their work. Such a lot of time had been put into making them and it seemed such a waste not to repurpose them. I distributed them to all of my crafter friends as stamping mats, which were very well received.
I use the giant Martha Stewart self-healing mat that covers my work table. I cover that with scrap paper (kids news print, DSP I don't like, etc.). The self healing mat comes pretty clean but then I don't care if it has ink or paint. If it starts to look really bad, I use a sharp putty knife and scrape off the residue. Once it's cut-up and gets rough (takes a couple of years) I flip it over. When both sides are ruined, I buy a new pad. I'll be sad if they stop making the MS pad because it's the only one I've found that is so large.
I have a huge roll of brown paper that is about 4 feet wide and put it across my entire table to protect it. I use silicone sheets for projects too and have a self healing mat also when cutting. Good luck!
I use a glass cutting mat. I can ink on it and blend nicely on it. The advantage of using a glass cutting mat or craft sheet over paper is that the blending tools move better over them (less friction) and you don't waste any ink as you can keep picking it up off the mats but once it's on the paper, that's it.
They also make clean up very easy, ie glues, paints, inks etc.
Old telephone books are a good choice to make a mess on when over stamping or sponging edges or using glue sticks on card edges etc. Remove the cover and it is ready to use. Work on a page, rip it off when dirty and toss, then a clean page is ready! No cost, and you are repurposing and recycling all at once! Plastic cutting mats or place mats, as mentioned previously, are are cheap work surfaces for "wet" jobs.
I found a silicone calendar at the Staples a few months ago -- it's thicker and larger than Tim Holtz craft mat. It's turquoise and has a grid for your to write appointments on. The other side is blank. It's awesome! Since it's thicker, it's great to stamp on. It cleans up as easily as the TH mat. I love it. And it was about $6. I looked at the website but I didn't see it. If you have a Staples store nearby, it's worth looking for!
Location: Margaritaville - I wish, Southern Indiana for real, but a Parrothead at heart.
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How do I protect my work space? I have a sign on the door which says "The Queen is NOT taking an audience today". Even my husband knows not to cross the threshold unless invited - thus everything down to the tiniest brad is protected. LOL
I use a ranger Teflon mat but only pull it out when I need it. I protect my surface with a self-healing mat I bought from an art store (cheaper than a sewing store). Then I use the cardboard at the back of paper packs or scrap printer paper for stamping that goes over the edge of a card or for test stamping. By not having my Teflon mat out all the time, I avoid accidentally cutting into it.
__________________ RebeccaEdnie Mixed Media Artist, Paper Crafter, Jewelry Designer SCSDirtyDozenAlumni Www.Boxofchocolatescrafts.Com YouNeverKnowWhatI’mGoingtoMake
i bought a huge clear desk mat at Ikea last summer for about $6 to protect my table. Then I have a cheap desk blotter - the paper calendar kind. I scribble all over that when choosing color pens, markers, inks, etc. when it gets too disgusting, i rip off the sheet and start a fresh page. I buy 2 when the new year calendars go on sale around Feb/March. I pull out my self healing mat when I need to cut. I found I was doing everything on top of my mat, like gluing, glittering, coloring etc but then had too many 'oops' when I would lay my CS down to cut and discover that I never wiped off that glob of glue or Stickles, so trying to keep mat just for cutting. I keep a stack of the acetate sheets from clear stamps on hand and use those for squirting glue onto or to blend colors.
I too use the desk mats from IKEA. I have three stations in my craftroom and have a desk mat for each one. It's like using a stamp mat as it cushions too, cleans easy with my homemade stamp cleaner. and I love the opaque color as it blends with my white countertops for a clean look. Haven't had to replace one yet and I have used them since 99. Also love that they are large enough to give me lots of space to work. Office supply stores might sell them too but with IKEA the six bucks was worth the investment....think I paid five back in 99.
The table is now set up with a few things still to get - I wasn't able to get the silicone baking sheet from IKEA because the girls said it was a seasonal product, which I question, but here in Hong Kong, it is highly possible that they might think that baking doesn't happen in the summer! Paper storage is yet to be tackled but I am paying a visit to the 12 dollar shop here on Sunday to see what goodies they have. Another issue is that too much storage on the table makes the workspace much smaller. Thanks all for your advice!
I bought a plexiglass sheet that completely covers the top of my oak worktable. On top of that I stamp on a small stack of old accordian computer paper. It is nice and large and creates a nice padded surface for stamping as well as for "stamping off" and jotting down notes and folding over my background stamps when they are upside down with card stock on top. When they get grubby, I toss them. I have a self healing mat for cutting and a silicon one for messy techniques, both of which I just plop on top of my paper stack when needed. I like some of the suggestions here, though, a they seem bigger than the special surfaces I have. Thanks, All.
Advice needed about protective mat for table/desk
