If you were going to mark a whole cloth...

[Betty J.]

I wondered what those of you who make whole cloth quilts mark with? I am planning a whole cloth quilt that needs careful detail marking. I have sometimes used golden threads paper to mark my quilts and crayola washables, but the paper may shift slightly and this quilt needs not to shift and the crayola washables make too fat a mark. Chalk would probably rub off before I'm done. Does pencil wash out?

[Nancy R.]

I've only made one wholecloth (so far) and I used the Mark-B-Gone blue pens because that's what Karen McTavish recommended in her class. She even had us use the thicker pen, but I'm sure the fine tip would also work. I imagine it would just be a bit more difficult to see the narrower lines. And I imagine that you have less trouble with the pen moving the fabric as you draw with the thicker tip. For me, the narrow tips always seem to grab the fabric and pull it along while making the lines.

Of course, it also depends on the fabric you are using. I think in your blog you were talking about using a tan background. I imagine the blue would show up well there. (I didn't get around to commenting on your blog, but I think your wholecloth would be cool. I'm thinking of making a wholecloth from a photo of my dog and making a Kansas Jayhawks wholecloth at some point.)

Nancy

[E.M. T.]

Has anyone investigated the "FriXion" pen by Pilot for marking on quilts ? I've been using them for
tracing embroidery designs and some machine quilting motifs on small projects that are not so special
that they can't be "experimental". The pens have been recommended in some local on-line shops and I've not heard
any complaints yet. There are many colors and are easy to use and see. Marks stay on and are removed with heat
from an iron and washing.

[Betty J.]

hmmm, perhaps I need to make a test of various marking methods. I don't have much extra fabric though, so it will have to be on something similar.

[Kathryn S.]

Betty Jo, I've used the blue wash out markers a lot, with no problem IF I soak the quilt in cold water, with no detergent, after it's finished. Heat or detergent would set the marks. I think the reason that a thicker point marker is suggested, is that the thinner point ones tend to drag on the quilt and might distort it. I've read in several places that the Frixion pens go away with heat but come back in cold. I don't have any info on washing them out.

Hand quilters use pencil, they mark lightly and use magic to get it out, I guess. I've never tried that, since I'm mostly a machine quilter.

I'd love to make a whole cloth quilt, I might start small and see how I like doing it before embarking on a big one! Right now I'm quilting the 2011 BOM and it is BIG

Kathy

[Kathryn S.]

BettyJo, I haven't done a whole cloth yet, I'm planning to try one soon. But I have used Sewline machinical pencils to mark several quilts which I then quilted on my 820. I used mostly the white when possible. It is very precise, I quilt quite densely most of the time. I marked very large areas and it usually stayed pretty easy to see while I was quilting. Sometimes I would find that it had rubbed off more than usual and I would be able to see the marks fine to trace over them, just didn't trust myself to see them clearly while I was quilting without that extra tracing. I washed the quilt when I was done without detergent on delicate in my HE front load washer (i used wool batting) and all the lines completely disappeared.

I don't know if this would be of any help at all but one of the coolest methods I've heard is to mark the quilt with white and use a black light while you are quilting so the lines really show up. I haven't tried it but I love the idea. - I grew up in the 60's and 70's, what can I say. :roll:

[Kathryn S.]

If using "Frixion" pens please test on your fabric first, On some fabrics (batiks, etc) they seem to bleach out where you marked. So far I have been happy with the black one, which I use to mark sewing lines for hand piecing.

Good luck

Margarita in Auburn CA

[E.M. T.]

Thanks ! Margarita ! I'll do some testing !!

[Rita C.]

Hi Betty Jo, If you are using a pencil then I think that it should be a mechanical one or a silver quilting pencil as these will come out easier. Graphite pencil marks smudge and are difficult to get out. I have used the sewline white chalk pen but it does tend to catch in the fabric but the marks do stay longer than a regular dressmakers chalk. There is an Amish website with info about using pencils and how to get the marks out. Perhaps you have seen it already but if not here's the link:

http://www.amishhandquilting.com/Tips_and_Tidbits.htm

I just had a quick look at your blog and I can see that this will be tricky to draw as there are a lot of fine lines. Definitely time to experiment on a test piece first. Good luck it will be an interesting journey. I love graphic art. A friend gave me a colouring book of Escher designs some years ago and I really enjoyed colouring them in.

[Lois B.]

Betty Jo, Thanks for opening this thread. I am looking for the same info, but not for a wholecloth quilt. Appreciate all the information above. I might add that in Sue Garman's classroom she states she uses a regular graphite mechanical pencil using a very light touch. I'd be interested in following Rita's link regarding getting those marks out. Lois

[Nancy R.]

I just wanted to mention that you can use warm water to get the blue pens out, just not hot. If you are doing trapunto in your wholecloth with water soluable thread, then you have to use warm water because the cold water will make the thread get brittle and hard to get out. I used warm water on my wholecloth and all of the blue and the thread came out with no problem. I would use cold water for the blue if there wasn't any water soluable thread, just to be safe.

[Betty J.]

Hi Betty Jo, If you are using a pencil then I think that it should be a mechanical one or a silver quilting pencil as these will come out easier. Graphite pencil marks smudge and are difficult to get out. I have used the sewline white chalk pen but it does tend to catch in the fabric but the marks do stay longer than a regular dressmakers chalk. There is an Amish website with info about using pencils and how to get the marks out. Perhaps you have seen it already but if not here's the link:

http://www.amishhandquilting.com/Tips_and_Tidbits.htm

I just had a quick look at your blog and I can see that this will be tricky to draw as there are a lot of fine lines. Definitely time to experiment on a test piece first. Good luck it will be an interesting journey. I love graphic art. A friend gave me a colouring book of Escher designs some years ago and I really enjoyed colouring them in.

Thanks to everyone that has responded and especially to Rita for this great link. Yes, the perspective project will be quite tricky to mark and quilt. I'm thinking I will not mark every line, but still, enough to be able to quilt it properly, and that will be a LOT of careful marking. Clearly I have to do some testing before I start this. I think I have every kind of marker mentioned, though some of them may be years old and not useful now. I'll drop the results of my mark testing into my blog and put a note here on the forum that I've done it. Look for that about Wednesday, I think. Anyone else have a magical solution for this project?

[Betty J.]

Ok, I thought it would take me longer to get the test done that it did. They all washed out without any problem. The clear winner is the fine Crayola washable marker. You can see my test report on my blog: http://blog.bjfabricartist.com/

I was a little surprised by my results.

[Lois B.]

Betty Jo, Thanks for the info. I got a huge package of those markers on sale at a fantastic price. I think I got a real bargin concidering how well they seem to be working out for you. Lois

[Betty J.]

Lois, That's great. Remember that my test was on 100 percent cotton that had been washed and starch-ironed. That may make a difference. I'd make a test on almost everything before marking, but I will say I have NEVER had a problem removing Crayola washables and they are so nice to see and don't rub off.