I am doing a piece that requires precise ... well, ok, I guess that's a stupid way to begin because all quilt making has to be precise. I'm new to machine quilting and I have to be able to see the lines I'm sewing clearly because I'm doing curved piecing. I looked at my box of marking pencils and came up cold. I have tried a bunch and have been unimpressed. Before I started quilting I did lots of other art so I have charcoal pencils (white and black) and pastel pencils so I started using one of those. But then I got nervous. I guess I could do a laundry test but meanwhile, has anyone ever tried using these kinds of pencils? because they DO make a clear precise line ... Also, what's your fave marking method?

I've tried pastels, and they made a huge mess. I use regular pencils, air and water soluble markers most of the time, I have not had a lot of luck with marking pencils- either too big to be useful, or not enough contrast to see well.

I am also doing curved piecing right now and I am using white and silver gel pens. The line is fine and goes on easy enough. I am hoping it won't show! So far so good!

are you marking stitching lines or quilting lines?

if we're talking stitching/seam allowance, and your pieces are small enough to fit, try using computer generated templates and printing on the back of your fabric. if you have an HP printer and don't pretreat the fabric, every bit of the ink comes out the first time you wash it.

if you mean marking the lines for quilting it after the blocks/top are pieced, i've only found 2 pens that are worth the space they take up in my drawer. those are the dritz (or no-name) purple and blue pens. purple fades away on its own; blue washes out.

Those gel pens sound interesting. LP"Mom" ... do the lines wash out? Does the white show up well on black fabric? if yes to both, where do you get them?

Are there special instructions with thoe blue and purple pens such as "do not iron"? Anything we need to be aware of?

My fav is the chalk pencil......I know that washes out for sure....but can only mark a bit at a time :D

My favorite for marking templates for applique is a mechanical pencil... my favorite for marking for quilting - a white chalk for darker fabrics - the white comes right off - colored chalks not so much - for that I use the purple/blue pen - in FL because of the humidity I sometimes have to mark in purple more than once because it evaporates so quickly but it does the job!!

I prefer the purple water soluble pens. You must NOT iron them or the color becomes permanent. I have left them on a quilt for a long, long time & the ink went away with no problem, but I avoid leaving them for very long periods because it makes me nervous! There is a white pen that is water soluble that works nicely on dark colors. I haven't used it much so I'm not as sure about that.
I worry about what the gel pens may do to my fabrics long term. They do not wash out. I know not every one likes the purple pens but I've had good luck with them.
Jo

You can find gel pens about anyplace, dollar general, big lots, walmart, but I do remember when my oldest daughter was still home she used them a lot in her artwork(drawing, animations etc.). They didn't always wash out of her clothes, but they do indeed show up on dark fabric! LOL You can buy gel pens made especially for dark paper, I do believe however, they are permanent.

I like the chalk pencils for dark and the blue water soluable pens for the light colors. If I'm really unsure...I'll draw on tracing paper, pin that to the quilt...then tear it away..that way, I'm sure of leaving no marks.

The gel pen marks washed out of the scraps I tested them on, but I would not use them to mark a top for quilting. I am using them to mark in the seam allowance for purpose of matching my pieces on the curve and also to mark the seam lines on the wrong side of the fabric. If I sew accurately the marks shouldn't show anyway!

I'm still using chalkboard chalk - white, blue, green and pink. So far, all have washed out. And, if I don't like the pattern I chose it wipes off and I can draw something else.

Everyone else has given you a list of great tools to use so I won't repeat them; I use a great many of them. Something that always seems to work for me is a thin sliver of soap. Once the soap in my shower gets too thin, I steal it and take it merrily off to my quilt room. The white works excellent on darker quilts and I have a couple of yellow slivers that work great on white quilts. The nice part is that the marks always wash out. The down side is that the mark is not super thin and it may not work for every type of design. Hope this helps.
~Tiffany

I also use slivers of soap. You can use a knife to obtain a nice fine line. I also use the purple that just fades away (sometimes too fast and I have to remark the lines)
Jane

I think I am going to try the soap trick for my next quilt.