EditorAnne, I recently purchased one of the mats and can really tell the difference when pressing blocks. Mine is by The Gypsy Quilter. Worth every penny. It's approximately 13 1/2 x 13 1/2 x 1/2.

I have heard that a wool blanket works just as well as a purchased wool mat. It's not as pretty, and you have to cut multiple layers, but I have my father in law army blanket and I'm going to give it a try.

I bought this one Mini Pressing Mat by Pam Damour a few week ago before starting my stained glass quilt - I was sceptical (just another costly gimmick?), but I needed something to replace my cheap ironing board.
I tried it.
LOVE it. I can’t imagine having done the pressing without it. It’s light and easy to travel with too. I got the smaller of the two sizes, somewhat wish I’d gone with the bigger of the two... but it’s totally worth it.

A lot of people these days swear by their wool pressing mats.

There are multiple brands out there, but they all seem pretty much the same--half an inch thick, grey wool, rounded corners. They look like they could all be from the same manufacturer.

Does anyone know whether there are differences between the different brands? Are some better than others?

Thanks for any insights you can offer.