Regular or Ultimate Pounce Pad?
 

I think I want to replace my homemade pounce pad with the genuine Pounce, but I cannot decide whether to buy the Ultimate or the regular. If the regular Pounce chalk falls off easily before I can quilt the design, then I would prefer the Ultimate. On the other hand, if the regular works well and the markings stay on and can be seen clearly, then I would rather use it and not go through the necessity of pressing a huge quilt when I'm finished quilting it. If you can share with me your experience, with either or both varieties of Pounce, but particularly with the regular, I would be grateful. I'm also curious to know if the blue chalk (which is only for regular Pounce) disappears less readily than the white. Thank you.

I have the white one and it is a real mess for me. I know to "swipe" it on, not "pounce" it on, but, it falls right off every time I try to use it. Maybe I am doing something wrong, but, I gave up on it. I'll be watching to see how others like it and if I should retry.

I have both..I would go with the iron off pounce over the plain any day.

Thank you very much!

reports are that the blue gives some problems. It is regular chalk and not the iron off. I use the Ultimate and fint it brushes off easily but also stays on when quilting.

I have no advice about which pounce pad to use but I have a question relating to them.

Do you think that in time the fine particles of chalk would damage the machine. The reason that I ask is that when I first started quilting I used regular chalk to draw lines and sew on them and not long after that I started having quite a few problems with my machine - to the point that I had to buy a new one. So I have my reservations about using the pounce pads. Maybe it had nothing to do with the problems but I will always have my doubts.

Has anyone else had similar problems or thoughts. I would be very interested to hear. Thanks

I have the same concern. I don't want to ruin any machines, but I've just gotten a new machine that I want to devote strictly to quilting; earlier today, I was practicing FMQ through chalk markings and I was thinking that can't be good for the machine. I dislike the idea of drawing all the individual lines in the stencils, but I may choose to do that anyway.

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THIS MAY OR NOT BE HELPFUL ALWAYS TEST ON SCRAP<O:p></O:p>
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CHALK<O:p></O:p>
For 25 years I have done freehand embroidery work and this has worked best for me.<O:p></O:p>
I ground up different colors of chalk in my mill grinder to see what worked best [what could be seen and removed]. White chalk [baby power, or corn starch] can be vacuumed off on med and dark fabric no problem.<O:p></O:p>
Other colors can be reduced in color intense with white, the more intense the color the harder it is to remove. I just use white and light blue now, the blue is reduced with white. Blue and white chalk is at hardware stores for snap lines [cheap].<O:p></O:p>
You can use a vanishing power with a black light on any color [in the dark]. It is very good for names.<O:p></O:p>
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PAPER<O:p></O:p>
I use canary paper from an art or drafting supply.<O:p></O:p>
I tear off more than I need and trace a design with 5mm mechanical pencil, place on a piece of ¼” foam rubber on a firm surface. Then I use a small needle syringe [for shots] and poke holes into the lines at key points about 1/8[SUP]th[/SUP]” apart following the design, then I flip it over and sand off the tips with a sanding block or sand paper. I have also used a clear plastic film a permanent marker and sanded the tips, or a small stencil burner. When sanding place pattern on foam or batting, not on a hard surface, to much pressure you might tear your pattern. Mark top front with an “F” [north] so you know placement direction. This way you can tell which way your pattern is laying, and it is easy to <st1:PersonName w:st="on">rev</st1:PersonName>erse, or flip.<O:p></O:p>
Then I have a reusable pattern I can use over and over.<O:p></O:p>
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APPLYING CHALK<O:p></O:p>
I took a short wide mouth ball jar lid and a nail [or drill] punched a lot of holes in it. <O:p></O:p>
Took a ¼”green scrubber cut it to fit in<st1:PersonName w:st="on">sid</st1:PersonName>e rim on top of the lid.<O:p></O:p>
Took a scrap of velour about 3/8” larger than the lid and placed it on top of the scrubber then screwed the hole thing together onto the jar with my chalk in it. You will have to pounce a while till the chalk starts coming through good. Wipe off your pattern before replacing it so you don’t get shadows. <O:p></O:p>
I did this, years before any thing else was on the market, and still use the same ones today.<O:p></O:p>
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PATTERN MARKING<O:p></O:p>
Holding your pattern down firm with one hand, slide your chalk jar across your pattern in one direction only, you can repeat as long as you do not let up with your first hand. You can see if you need to slide again as long as the first hand stays in place. If it is wrong, vacuum it off and start over. <O:p></O:p>
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ON A QUILT MACHINE:<O:p></O:p>
I use a piece of Plexiglas about 48x20 and slide it between my batting and my quilt top. This makes a firmer surface to stencil on. Then I take my pattern stencil and place it where I want it, swipe it with powder. Slide the Plexiglas out and quilt. Then vacuum the power off later.<O:p></O:p>
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If unsure where to place your pattern on the quilt after it is on the machine try this. Draw placement lines on your pattern, north-south-east-west. [Fold in half matching center both directions]. Mark your top with an X placement before you load it on the machine. Then you have your placement mark and don’t have to guess alignment. <O:p></O:p>
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LETTERING <O:p></O:p>
I have made charts of script alphabets in different sizes 1”-2”-ect. on large sheets of card stock paper. [ years ago, with a projector.] Then I trace my words to transfer to my garment or quilt. Now copy machines are the answer. <O:p></O:p>
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I am fast at this as I have done it for years. If you think this is to long, I don’t type, I peck.<O:p></O:p>
I am just saying…..I hope this helps someone.<O:p></O:p>

I have the Ultimate punce pads, in both white and blue. I like the white. It does bounce around when longarming. Just don't mark too much at a time, so it doesn't wear off before you get there. I will not use the blue again, because once I had a very hard time getting the blue marks out. Luckily it was marked on a blue sky fabric, so the light marks which remained here and there were not noticable. After that experience, I use the blacklight powder instead of blue.