My workbench is an old plywood board atop a long narrow bookcase-like piece of furniture. On the plywood, I laid a heavy plastic advertising poster for bare-root rose bushes face-down (the back side is white). The inevitable little spills of paint, glue and so on don't bother it. When it's time to cut, I grab a small flat piece of clear plastic that I use as a cutting board, plus under the cutting board, I'll slip a small piece of box cardboard if the part I'm cutting is white.