Glass Mat Studio? Yes please!

I have long been a fan of glass mats for my card making and crafting. I started with my first one several years ago. It was all the rage on blogs and videos of crafters I follow. I managed to get one locally, although I had to wait for it. I had only been able to get the travel sized one previously,  and other than not being big enough for daily use, I loved it. It didn't take long for me to decide the higher cost of the large one was well worth it.  

The mat I started with has a mixed media portion that is a white, cleanable mixing surface for inks, pastes, etc. I honestly rarely used that, and tended to just use the mat itself as it was easy to clean up. My biggest complaint? It was black backed.  It looks clean, but it is so easy to get ink on it, or adhesives, not see it, and get them on my clean cards as I worked on them. 

My next mat was white.  This was a big improvement in my mind. I ordered it from the local big box store, and had it delivered for free. Big mistake. You would think, in sending a big sheet of glass, care would be taken in shipping it. Nope. I reached in the box and ended up cutting myself on the glass that had cut through the packaging plastic after breaking.  I did get an intact one, but had it picked up at the store instead. 

This mat was better than my other, although it still had its issues.  It is very large, which initially seemd goid, but it took up a lot of space on my desk.  Too much. I also found that because of its size, the rulers would always be out of reach. Generally, it was a good change though, and easy to see on the white background if I needed to tidy up a spot so as not to soil my new cardstock.  

I registered in the Stampin' Up! fall workshop, and having been involved for more than 5 years now, I knew that I would be treated to a sneak peek of all the new products coming up.  Well, that was what I got! I was so excited when they announced the Glass Mat Studio. I immediately knew I was going to get one. 

As a demonstrator,  I get early access to products, but this one? It was even difficult for us to get. I picked out. The day after my order went in, they cut off demonstrator orders to ensure that there were enough for the join up offer coming up. 

So... why is the Stampin' Up! Glass Media Mat so great?  

1. Size... it's a great size that doesn't take up too much real estate, but is big enough to work with. 

2. Great, smooth surface. It is hard and even and provides a great work surface. 

3. Rulers in metric and imperial. I don't know about you, but I like having both. I use imperial as it works well with the American paper size, but I also am familiar with metric just being Canadian. They are easy to read, and well within reach all of the time. 

4. The extras! This mat is unlike others, and comes with two other pieces. There is the silicone tray that sticks well to the surface, and provides a great place to hold ink pads so they don't scoot around, small items like dies, and cutouts, etc. It also has a cleaning cloth that is a thinner version of the shammy used for cleaning stamps off. 

If you want a glass mat for yourself, it is a great surface for stamping, but also painting and a myriad of other crafts. The only way to get one is for free with a join offer. $135 for $165 of product AND a glass mat as well, or just choose additional product instead. A good deal is made even better for January and February!