A new mat

A couple posts ago, I mentioned that I wanted to get a bigger cutting mat. I finally did! JoAnn's was having a 40% sale on notions, 50% sale on Kona cotton fabric, and through my guild, I have a 10% discount card for all purchases made. It just means that I got $65 of quilting goods for $35. :)

Not only is there double the cutting width, but my rotary cutter slides SO much smoother! I felt like swearing I had put a new blade on, but I hadn't. I think the biggest thing with my old mat, it just had a million little grooves from 4+ years of use. I was always needing to clean off little bits of green rubber from my blade. Yet if I didn't press harder, it wouldn't cut the fabric. Now I'm just whizzing through the fabric on the new mat. I did switch from Olfa to Dritz, merely due to the cost.

Currently I'm working on a train themed quilt... and frankly my heart isn't very into it. Yet I know if I don't push through and finish it, it'll never get done! I want to at least get the top made before moving onto a new project. I think the 288 HSTs really kicked down my excitement for the quilt. And it's just a lap size one! :P

Leah