I've never met flexible cutting mats I didn't love, and every time we are shopping and I see them in a new size, shape, or color, they want to come home with me. Happiness is making the time to sit down at the sewing machine to create designer storage pouches to keep them organized.
Have you seen the mats that come in a wavy shape with no-skid undersides and are color coded red, green, yellow, and orange with tasteful images of cows, carrots, chickens and fish? My first thought was "Those are too pretty to chop on!" That was my second thought, too, and admittedly, I don't chop on them. But I do put them under the slicers and dicers and other things that don't want to sit directly on the counter top. I also put them under less expensive cutting mats, many of which I have cut down to custom sizes that are just right for particular cutting, chopping, and scooping tasks.
Even though I don't cut directly on my better quality mats, they still need to be washed and some were too large to fit well in the dishwasher, or even in the sink.
Here is how I fixed that problem:
With the gripping side face up and the cutting side down on top of another mat,
I placed a metal yardstick across the middle of my oversized mat and with a sharp knife or razor blade gently scored a line flush with the yardstick. Don't cut deeply, as you don't want to cut all the way through the surface. Repeat, scoring lightly in the same direction, along the same line, holding the yardstick down so that it doesn't slip as you cut. Easy does it and please do not cut off your finger.
After 2 or 3 tries, pick the flexible mat up and gently try to fold it in half with the scored edge outside. Don't force it. If it doesn't make a straight fold along the line you scored, just line the ruler up again and lightly score it again. It is better to redo this a couple of times than to cut too deep and cause the mat to break in half. HINT: If you have never scored anything with a knife before, practice on a piece of cardboard first until you get the hang of it.
There will be a transparent line where you scored that will show through the mat, but no crease or indentation on the top side. If you cut straight and use a gentle touch, your fold line with be perfect and now the cutting mat will fit in your dishwasher so that it can be sterilized between uses. Over time the pattern will start to wear off from repeated dishwashing, but I've been washing mine for a year and they are still in pretty decent shape. I'd rather risk wearing them down a little than contaminating our food.
