Have you ever wanted to use your electronic die cutter to emboss some of those awesome files you own but don’t want to buy those expensive mats to only use once or twice? You may be like me, I had hesitated purchasing an embossing mat because of the price. What if I didn’t use the mat that often? I would constantly worry if my machine settings were off, thus tearing the mat up. It would be money wasted. Figuring out how to make my own could save me some dough, right? Right! I’ll show you how easy it is to DIY. An embossing mat for your electronic die cutter with materials you may already have on hand. Plus, it can be replaced if tore up for the price of a piece of foam. Which was only 79 cents, by the way. Oh yeah! Let’s get started.
Supplies:
- Cutting Mat (one with strong adhesive, I used my Gazelle Thick Media mat)
- craft foam under 2mm thick, preferably 1 mm
- repositional glue
As you can see, I only use three products. This project is turning out cheaper than I thought. I didn’t even have to run to the craft store. Boy, when I am crafty, I’m reeeeaaally crafty.
The first thing you want to do is stick your foam to the mat. I got pretty lucky, I just happened to have a Gazelle Thick Media mat lying around not being used. It was perfect for this as it is extra sticky, the foam adhered to the mat extremely well with a little brayering. I have not tried this with a standard mat, but I am sure if it is not sticky enough some duct tape or glue will work fine. If you do use glue, I would recommend something like I use here that is repositionable. That way if you need to replace the foam or just use the mat, pull it up and add another piece. Notice I offset my foam a little from the corner. It is a 9×12 piece and it needs to pass between the rollers that I will move when using this mat. The foam is thick and those rollers will make some nasty indents in my project if I don’t take precautions.
Once my foam was attached, I started applying glue to the entire piece. I love the ZIG 2-Way because it has a great tack without tearing my paper. Again, you can use any repositionable glue or tape just make sure it does not have a permanent bond.
Once the glue is dry you won’t see anything but a slight shine on the foam. It was weird that the foam foamed up the glue. Never saw that happen before but it doesn’t affect the results at all. I just mention it in case you wonder what in the world is happening when you try it.
That’s all there is to making your own embossing mat for your electronic die cutter. Pretty simple, huh? Cheap, too. Make sure you check out my project showing if my frugality panned out later in the week. You will be pleasantly surprised!
I am new to this group and reading your directions (embossing) you mentioned a Gazelle mat. I have never heard of this. Where can I find more info.
Regards,
Jackie
The yellow Gazelle mat I was referring to is a mat to use with the electronic die cutting machine the Boss Kut Gazelle. It is their heavy duty, extra sticky mat. The machine is available for purchase at http://www.bosskut.com. Hope this helps and if you have any questions, let me know! 🙂
hi, do you know where can I buy some Replacement Cutting Bladed for the gazelle? thanks
Hi, Genny.
I don’t know where you would get them since they went out of business. I haven’t used my Gazelle in probably six years. Did you try eBay?