Silhouette mats are EXPENSIVE! And I find that they don’t really last very long. Yes you can re-sticky them and clean them, doing all sorts of things to extend its life, but let’s be honest, what creative crafty person wants to do a chore to make something work! In comes the world of Nicapa Cutting Mats.
I like these mats because they are INEXPENSIVE, I pay about $12 for 3 (Silhouette brand ones are about $10-12 each). They really do a great job. I don’t find them significantly better than the original mats but they are definitely on par with them. The grid and size are exactly the same as the original ones so there is not compensating.
Now I am not saying these are perfect, because we know that’s just not true. Here are the things I dislike about them. I find the corners at the top become unsticky faster than I would like. I simply use some drafting tape to hold them down but it’s annoying since the rest of the mat seems to hold fine. Second once it gets all scratched up and icky, I don’t find you can revive them very well. Lastly they are a little thinner than the original mats and that can be an issue with heavier items.
Now you can decide what is the right purchase for you, Silhouette original mats or Nicapa mats.
I am glad you did this review. I need to try these.
Overall been very happy with them. I do have a few silhouette mats I use as well, but for the cost these seem to be the better bet.
Hi, thank you!! I use tren all the time, only hace issues with them while using print and cut, but the I found the way to make them work!!
Oh sorry to hear print and cut didn’t go very well, but so glad you found a solution! what was it?
I will have to see if we get these in South Africa. Love your articles and glad I got to learn about your page
Thank you Bernadette! Welcome to the crafting world!