Help -Emergency how do I remove pencil marks, #2? w/o washing quilts?
 

Can't find earlier post so am urgently requesting help for suggestions to remove pencil - yup, regular pencil marks from my quilt edges? Sent off to be quilted and squared up and trimmed. Got my two (king size) quilts back with looks like #2 pencil lines on edges of quilts.

The real shocker was they weren't quilted with the designs I had chosen!
THUD! That sound was me hitting the floor. Then I noticed all the pencil marks on the quilts around the edge. Found out later this experienced LA quilters parents were in a wreck and in serious condition and she flew out to be with them, did my quilts and left. Even tho wrong design, she did a good job - but the pencil marks?

Some of her pencil lines are inside where my binding will go when I squared up quilt. How do I get them out without washing the quilts?

Can anyone help with my now soon to be very late Christmas presents? Thank you

Eraser :) (seriously) Find a good eraser, since some work better than others, and erase. Go gentle on your quilt so you don't rip out stitching or distort the fabric, but eraser does work. Good luck

I had the same problem. Joann's had a fabric eraser and that worked pretty good.

what about trying a tide stick? I dont know if it will work, but you could try it on an inconspicuous spot??

this is the best eraser for fabric...better than any normal pencil eraser... and DON'T put in washer...it won't come out and it will set it... put some pencil marks on plain cotton and wash it... after this, mark with mechanical pencils instead of #2...they will come out much easier... the #2 is very difficult to get out...

I have no experience with the JoAnn's eraser. I will, however, say I have never had an issue with any #2 pencil markings coming out in the wash. I've used regular #2 pencil; mechanical pencil (with the same #2 lead) as well as one of the other refillable 'quilting' marking lead 'pencils' (the ones that come with the chalk markers of the same style). Those I did find particularly messy though. But I've never had any of them not come out in the wash.

Is there a reason you don't want to wash the quilt? Or are you just waiting to wash until after it's bound? I would bind and then wash. That is what I do all the time, regular detergent, perm. press cycle and then dry on a perm. press cycle and NEVER had issues.

Good luck.

the leads in the mechanical pencils are either .05 mm or .07 mm and usually much harder because of the size of the lead...they come off so easily, that hand quilting will take it off during the quilting process. i have never marked a quilt being sent to a LA quilter and do not mark when i'm doing it, other than a few registration marks with chalk. #2s are soft and therefore mark the fabric easily...if you have had no problem getting it out then i'm glad, but i have had real problems and NEVER touch my quilts with pencils anymore... i don't wash anything with a pencil mark in it because i have had it 'set' the marks... the fabric erasers are just great and take it out fine...

This great information. Thank you.

I have used a combination of rubbing alcohol, water and a couple drops of dish washing liquid. 6 tblsps alcohol, 2 tblspns water, the dish washing liquid. Mix together and then with a soft toothbrush go over the pencil marks. It took out the pink marking pencil I use just great.

I have found that a gentle rubbing with a soft gum type eraser works well and doesn't seem to damage the fabric. As said earlier, don't rub hard. Just a gentle rub over the areas where the pencil marks are. Anything that was left came out in the wash.