Can You Use Light Grip Mat For Vinyl

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Cricut mats are essential to getting started and working with your Cricut Machine. They come up in ii different sizes and iv different tack levels, each color coded and then nosotros don't get confused!

All of the Cricut cut machines come with a cutting mat included, whether they are part of a packet or non. However, you will need to replace mats from time to time, and you lot might want to use the different varieties of mat for different projects.

Cricut Mats

Cricut cutting mats

Cricut mats come in four different tack levels :

Standard grip mat
Lite grip mat
Strong grip mat
Fabric grip mat

There are two sizes of Cricut mat:

The Cricut 12 x 12 mat
The Cricut 12 x 24 mat

They besides come in unlike pack sizes. Y'all can get either a 1, 2 or 3 pack of each tack mat, or y'all can buy the iv pack pictured to the right with one of each kind of mat.

Let'southward accept a expect at the four different tacks of mat, and cheque prices on Amazon and Cricut to get the best bargain!

1. The Cricut Standard Grip Mat

cricut cutting mat

The green Standard Grip Mat is included with the Cricut Explore Air 2, while the blue Light Grip Mat is included with the Cricut Maker.

The green mat is not too sticky, and not too under-gummy, it'due south simply standard! Though, to be honest, it tin can be a piddling overly sticky when brand new!

This is the mat I utilize more than any other, probably because I mainly make heat transfers for t-shirts. If you've been wondering which Cricut mat for vinyl? This is the one, for both HTV and agglutinative vinyl.

What can you cut with the Standard Grip Mat?

This mat is smashing for cutting the following items:

Light cardstock (I reckon you tin can get away with heavy cardstock likewise)
Estrus transfer vinyl (HTV) or Fe-on vinyl
Agglutinative vinyl
Patterned and embossed cardstock

2. The Cricut Calorie-free Grip Mat

cricut mats lightgrip

The Cricut Low-cal Grip Mat is light bluish and has a low tack surface. This can be used for lighter and thinner materials. Ideally, you don't desire to put thin low-cal materials onto a standard grip because it'south so hard to remove them one time the cutting is completed. Items likewise rip hands if they are too stuck down.

What tin yous cut with the Cricut Low-cal Grip Mat?

The following materials are ideal with this mat:

Newspaper – printed or otherwise
Thin cardstock
Thin construction paper
Vinyl
Whatever other thin and low-cal cloth (non-material)

3. The Cricut Stiff Grip Mat

cricut mats guide for design space

The Cricut Strong Grip Mat is the purple mat. You do not desire to be using this for cutting paper! This is a loftier tack mat made for holding thicker and harder materials downwardly while cutting. For most of these materials you will too want to be using the Deep Cutting Blade and Housing.

What can you cut with the Strong Grip Mat?

Thicker, heavier cardstock (such as glitter cardstock)
Cricut magnet sheets
Chipboard and poster board
Fabric with stiffener

4. The Cricut Textile Grip Mat

best cricut mats

The final Cricut cutting mat is the Fabric Grip Mat. This is a stronger mat, made especially for use with the Rotary blade (just the Cricut Maker uses this bract). However, this mat tin too be used with the bonded-fabric blade (used with the Cricut Explore or Maker).

What can you cut with the Fabric Grip Mat?

The proper noun gives it away merely in instance y'all missed information technology, the Cloth Grip Mat is used for cutting…fabric! It can exist used to cut silk, cotton, canvas, burlap and a wide diverseness of other fabrics. When yous select your material in Cricut Design Space, the software volition prompt yous with the blade you need to use to cut it.

Cricut Mat Sizes

Cricut cutting mats come in two sizes: 12 ten 12 inches or 12 ten 24 inches. If you are using the larger mat and then you need to modify the setting in Cricut Blueprint Space.

The 12 x 12 mat will be sufficient for most projects, merely every now and again you might want to go large.

The Cricut 12 ten 24 mat

What practice people use the large 12×24 mat for? That was my first question when I first heard about these long cut mats. Here are some examples of projects people demand the 12 x 24 inch mat for:

Making vinyl on wood signs
Big wall decals
Window/glass graphics using sign vinyl
XXXXXXL size t-shirts!

These mats are also adept if y'all are creating bulk amounts of a single particular. For case, bill of fare makers may go through a lot of crimson hearts and then they merely cutting 12 x 24 inches of them to have in stock.

7 Cricut Cut Mat Tips & Tricks

These 7 tips and tricks are drawn from our larger commodity, 25 Cricut Tips & Tricks.

1. Cricut mat too sticky?

When the mat is brand new, it is actually sticky, and might be a niggling too mucilaginous for your project. After you lot peel the protective cover away, you can place a clean dry out t-shirt over the mat to de-tack it a little bit. It can be difficult to become cardstock off, even if you accept all the correct tools, when it'southward new and fully mucilaginous. Information technology is very easy to damage the fabric when you remove it from the mat.

ii. Cleaning your Cricut cutting mat

You are able to clean Cricut cutting mats with babe wipes. The water wipes without fragrance (and non-alcoholic) are best. This will remove cardstock and vinyl balance, as well as household dust and lint. Cutting mats are a lot similar belly buttons in that way.

3. Proceed the mat covers

Cricut cutting mats come with a plastic protective embrace over them. Go along this cover and replace it later on each use to keep the mat cleaner and stickier for longer.

4. Test cut

Test cut on new projects. If the bract is set too low information technology volition chomp up your cut mat. If set as well high, information technology may only cut slightly through your vinyl, cardstock, etc. and ruin the cloth. A examination cut involves asking your machine to cut a small circle at the top of your material. Make adjustments as necessary.

5. Pull mat away from project

As well as using the right tools to remove your cutting projects from the cut mat, here is another tip to getting it off. Rather than peeling your project away from the mat, peel the mat away from the projection. Bend the mat away instead of lifting or pulling the item off the mat.

6. Employ a medium tack record for extra grip

If you are needing a stronger grip, yous can use a medium tack painters tape to stick your foursquare of material to the cutting mat. Your problem might exist a mat that has lost all its tack, or that you need to firmly use a thicker or heavier cloth to the mat. But make sure your machine isn't set to cutting over the tape.

seven. Set the punch to the correct material

Make sure your dial is prepare to the right material. This may save your mat getting cut up! I have to recall this especially when I am switching between materials in the same session. Thankfully I haven't ruined annihilation too badly all the same!

That'southward all we've got fourth dimension for in this post, just let us know in the comments section below if you take any more tips. Tell us nigh your experiences with Cricut cut mats, and what yous use the large 12 ten 24 mats to cut.

Compare mat prices between Amazon and Cricut and get yourself the best deal!

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