These are the basic tools: pencil, drawing square, utility knife, Exacto knife, long straight edge (I have a three foot steel ruler) and the mat cutter. Of course, I should add a flat table and a hand clamp to hold the straight edge firmly in place. But more about that below.    

If cost is a factor, keep in mind that having a shop custom cut a mat for you will usually cost you more than the materials and supplies we are talking about.

I have used a cutter made by Logan for a good number of years and I am still using it these days.
It has replaceable blades, can be adjusted for the depth of cut, and is rugged enough to be tossed into a drawer. You can buy one of these units on the internet for about $25 (include an extra set of 10 blades for about $2 more). You could consider buying their hobby kit that comes with a simple board, straight edge and "utility knife". It will run you about $50 more. But the main item is the 2000 series cutter. I am not promoting Logan, it is just that I have one of their cutters. For more details go to their website (also take a look at the published manual that describes how to use the cutter):  
  http://www.logangraphic.com/products/boardmounted/  

The two aluminum pieces with screws are not part of the cutter. I have modified this unit so it can be attached to a straight rail for long cuts. What I did was to buy a piece of aluminum extrusion that is typically used for counter top trim. It is available in most hardware stores. This was screwed to a piece of oak as shown below. The 'clips' are made of this same extrusion and happen to make a nice clip-to-lip contact. I did have to drill and tap two holes in the cutter to accept them.
The second (poor) picture below tries to show that the bottom of the mating surfaces should be smooth. This sits on the mat material to be cut so they don't mar the surface of the material.

Let me point out that this modification was my idea after using a kit with this cutter several times. It is not for everyone and I would recommend you try a simple kit, gain some feel and confidence in cutting mats and then decide if you want to make the simple additions I developed. I did because I wanted to be able to cut bigger sections of mat (up to 40 inches) and have better control.

So, let's cut some mats. Oh, I forgot, you have to have mat material. Typically sheets 30 x 40 inches are available in art supply stores in a wide variety of colors that include textured or special featured designs. Most have a white interior layer, some have black or even colored edges. You have to decide.
Let's say that your child (or favorite pet) made a nice drawing that you want to save; you even like to have it matted and framed. You pick out some material for a double matted, but small, display. You want green mat to be an edging and the white for the front or outside layer. Let's go.

You happen to have an old frame that might be OK to use. But it has an odd dimension of 13 x 10 inches. No problem; so let's see what we can do. You make some measurements of the picture. You decide how wide a border you want with the green, the part that goes next to the picture. Let's say you decided the green mat should be a bit dominant and be 3/8th inch wide. (Usually this 'edge' is about 1/4 inch or less). You make a rough sketch. The white mat will be on top of the green and extend to the frame. Fine! Now you cut two pieces of mat material to 13 x 10 inches (one green, one white).

Make a layout of the picture size, 7 x 10 inches, on the back of the green mat first.
Repeat: The first opening will be on the green mat, the one next to the picture! So you draw the rectangle carefully on the back side, making sure the dimensions are centered. Now you are ready to make your first cut.
Note: always draw the design and make your cuts on or from the back side.

Put a layer of scrap material underneath the cutting area so the blade will not cut into the table surface (you could even used your wife's plastic pad she uses for cutting fabric.) Then place the guide along the pencil mark for the first cut, clamp it firmly to the table. Align the cutter so the scribed line is about 1/16th of inch out from where the cut should start (more about this later). Push down on the cutter making the blade go into the mat and slide it along the guide while you hold the guide firmly in place. Stop when the cutter is about 1/16th beyond the vertical line representing the end of the cut.

Voila, your first cut . . . but don't look! Just lift the guide and rotate the mat clockwise one quarter turn. Repeat the alignment and cutting process. Do this two more times and you should be finished!

When you carefully turn the mat over you may notice that a couple corners are not quite cut through. You can finish this with an Exacto knife held at about a 45 degree angle. The reason for this "not-quite-all-the-way" cut may be that the depth of cut is not enough or that the blade was started and/or ended not far enough beyond the line. Experiment and find out what is good for you.

For the opening of the second mat (white in this case), you trace the size by inverting the green mat onto the back of the white. Line up both sheets, hold them in place and use a pencil to outline the four corners. Notice the piece of masking tape near the tip of the pencil. This is done to prevent an ugly smudge on the cut edge of the green mat. Just the tip protrudes as the taped pencil slides along. Be sure to hold the pencil vertically. Slanting it would cause the tracing to be off. This technique is also useful when you want to make several designs with the same pattern and dimensions.

So now we have the corners marked on the back of the white mat.

Carefully pencil in the width of the border, 3/8th inch in this example. Next draw the four lines where this mat should be cut. See above.

Make the cuts and  . . .now you have your first matted artwork!

 

 

 

 

Just a couple notes in case you want to explore from this point on:

1. Practice making a couple more of the above and really feel like you know what you are doing. The material is relatively cheap and your time is your own. Experiment!

2. Always draw the pattern on the back of the mat.

3. At the intersections, add right angle lines to show where the corners are. Label them if necessary. What I mean by that is shown in the example below. It shows you where the cut should start and end.

4. Make the cuts so the part to be eliminated is in front or away from you as you line up the guide. That way you will have the beveled edge of your cut mat in the right location. Take a close look at the pieces you have just cut. Does it have the bevel in the righ direction?

5. Try to start the cut a bit before the guide line and end a bit beyond. About 1/16 inch. This will help to make a complete and nice cut and should release the center part. Again: experiment.

Let's do another example with some unusual cut-outs. I drew a design on the back side of a piece of blue mat.
Notice the extra lines at right angles to where the cuts should start and stop.
I normally don't draw the outline this heavy, but this time I wanted the lines to show better for these photos.

 

Here is the result after I made the cuts as outlined above.

 

 

Now it is your turn.

 

     To top of the page