End your cut JUST outside the corner of your marked line. Press firmly down on your mat board cutter to bring the blade down and slide the cutter along the edge of the acrylic ruler, maintaining even pressure as you go.
![x-acto cutting board view to adjust x-acto cutting board view to adjust](https://www.unitedmfrs.com/v/vspfiles/photos/detail/5223.jpg)
Ensuring that you start and end your cut slightly past the corner of your marked cutout is really important. Slowly press to bring the blade down and eyeball it so that the point of the blade will pierce JUST outside the corner of your mark. Then, bring your mat board cutter to the corner of the marked cutout line. With your mat cutter tool sitting INSIDE the box you drew, line up the guide lines on the tool with your drawn pencil line.īutt your acrylic ruler up against the cutter to maintain this straight line. Cut out the photo openingsĪnd here is the most daunting (but totally doable) part of all! Draw your box for the opening in the mat board using these marks as your guide. If you are framing an 8×10 photo, then your cutout will be 7.5″x9.5″, and so on and so forth.ĭivide your opening measurement in half and mark this measurement out from the centre point.
![x-acto cutting board view to adjust x-acto cutting board view to adjust](https://imgs.michaels.com/MAM/assets/1/726D45CA1C364650A39CD1B336F03305/img/9BE8E34F9D6245DCBF2CDD90912BA2A6/10216738.jpg)
Use your acrylic ruler to ensure straight lines. Doing this just properly marks your centre point. On the BACKSIDE of your mat board, mark an X from corner to corner with a pencil. This part takes the longest and the most planning. There were many times where my rotary cutter strayed and it was frustrating as heck to have to start all over.
#X ACTO CUTTING BOARD VIEW TO ADJUST PRO#
PRO TIP: use the acrylic ruler to help you get a straight line. Using the piece of paper or stock family photo that comes inside the picture frame as a guide, cut your mat board to the proper size with the rotary cutter. Test a few cut lines on a scrap piece of mat board before starting to ensure the blade cuts through the board. Secondly, test the proper depth setting on your cutting tool. I made the mistake of not doing this and it resulted in a few crooked cutouts. Definitely use this and stick it to the backside of your acrylic ruler. There is a piece of anti-slip material that comes with the particular tool that I’ve linked above. Before you start this project, take some time to review the written instructions that come with the mat board cutter.