3440
Lake Tahoe Blvd., South Lake Tahoe, 96150
ph 530-541-8438 fx 530-541-8709
www.masterframing.com
SIMPLIFIED MAT CUTTING
1) Measure your image size allowing ¼ inch on all four sides to allow room for the mat to overlap. Write this on the worksheet.
2) Decide how wide you want the highest mat to be and write this in the four appropriate places on the worksheet.
3) Decide how much of the lowest mat you want to show. Write this in the four appropriate places on the worksheet.
4) You now have five figures in the height column as well as five in the width column. Add these figures to get the outside dimensions of your mat board.
5) Cut the outside of your "highest" mat to the outside dimension.
6) Cut the outside of your "lowest" mat ¼" smaller than your "highest" mat. (For example, if your highest mat was 11 X 14, cut your lowest mat to 10 ¾" X 13 ¾".)
7) Using a ruler or the mat cutting bar, draw pencil lines on the back side of the highest mat to represent how wide you want it to be. (You already decided this dimension in step 2.) Then draw a registration mark on the back of the mat.
8) Cutting from the back side, cut along your lines. Remember, the cutting head is always over your cutout when you cut. Otherwise, you’ll get a reverse bevel. (The quality of your cut depends on a sharp blade and a smooth slip sheet.)
9) Put ATG adhesive around the back of the mat about ¼" in from the inner edges. Also put some ATG on the cutout.
10) Align the cutout back inside the mat, noting where the registration mark is. Then stick the lowest mat face down onto it so that none of the edges protrude past the outer edges of the highest mat.
11) Figure out the dimension to cut your lowest mat by adding the width of your highest mat to the amount you want the lowest mat to show. (For example, if the highest mat is 2" and you want the lowest mat to show ¼", then your next mat is going to be cut 2 ¼")
12) Measuring from the outer edge of the highest mat, draw lines representing where your cuts should be on your lowest mat.
13) Cut along these lines. Note that the cutout of the highest mat is serving as a slip sheet for this series of cuts.
CONGRATULATIONS, YOU’RE DONE!!
If you have questions, please feel free to call our shop at 541-8438, or stop in and we can help you with any and all of your needs.
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