There comes a time when your cutting mat loses its tackiness. No doubt you will notice poor cuts, misalignment, the catching or skipping of the blade and sometimes odd noises emanating from your cutting machine. Instead of running to my nearest craft store to buy yet another pricey mat, I just re-sticky my old mat. Below are my favourite methods:
1. If a newer mat and still has quite a bit of glue residue left to work with, try running your mat under warm water and gently rub off any bits of paper or fluff. The key is not to rub too vigorously as you may unglue your mat. Once most of the residue is gone, just hang to dry. It should renew your mats stickiness if enough glue left on mat. If still not tacky enough, add a little bit of dishwashing liquid, rub gently, rinse and hang to dry. If still not tacky move to step 2.
2. If you tried the above and mat is still not sticky enough, it is time to thoroughly clean your mat and re-glue. Run your mat under warm water and apply dishwashing liquid. Use an old credit card or scraper to remove the most stubborn deposits. Rinse off and hang to dry. Once dry, apply masking tape around the edges of your mat. Make sure that only the mat grid is exposed (see pic). Go outside as this is a messy and smelly process or spray inside a cardboard box. Using Krylon Easy Tack Repositional Adhesive, shake the can for 3 minutes. Position so that it is approximately 8 inches above mat surface. Begin spraying from side to side in a even continuous motion. Continue to the bottom. Then begin spraying up and down. This should suffice. You want a thin, even layer of adhesive. Let dry for 1 hour and then remove masking tape. Do not be tempted to add more layers of adhesive until you attempt a cut, as too much glue can gum up your blade and can make it impossible to remove your cuts cleanly from the mat. Try a test cut on your machine. If too sticky, just lightly dab your mat with a clean t-shirt or tea towel. If still not tacky enough, try applying 1 more thin layer of adhesive.
Hopefully these tips work for you! Happy crafting!