Hi there,

I recently finished some items for a colleague that were embroidered. I had to center the text on the item with her business logo. To do this, I used a ruler and the blue chalk pen. I found that the chalk didn't 'steam away' as promised, so I filled a spray bottle with a weak soap solution and sprayed the items and quickly washed them - the color lifted with no problem.

The chalk pens come in white, yellow, and another color, I believe. I would have used white but my background was white. :( Does anyone know if this is problem with blue is normal or if there is a better way for marking/ blocking techniques?

Thanks!

This was the clover chalk pen....

I don't know if it's the same marker or not but my sister used one and she thought she would never get it out, I have a white chalk wheel but I can't get it on heavy enough to see very well and it brushes almost totally away during handling. I've tried those white pencils but the lead keeps breaking.

Kathy, I recently found a white pen that works quite well on black and dark colors. It dispenses a liquid that takes a sec to show up. I got so excited, it was almost like discovering chocolate for the first time! :lol: Okay, I may be exaggerating, but not by much. It really is a slick product. Check you local quilt shop.

Thanks for the reply Boo. As I said I'm at the end of the world but I do know there is a quilt shop about 70 miles from here. I've got to get something because this quilt has lots of dark green and blue in it. I have a blue wash away pen that I love but just doesn't show up on darks.

Do you ever shop online? I can give you a couple addies, but will have to research which have the pen. When you find it buy a few. You would hate for this to happen again.

I sure do shop online and would love to know where to find the marker

Boy, do I have a story. I bought one of those wash away felt tip pens that had a purple cast to it that fades away with time. It did a great job, just like it was supposed to. While marking a friend's herloom quilt, I grabbed a lookalike pen, same color inside and out, that turned out to be PERMANENT. And I mean with capital letters. :shock: I tried everything to get it out. Nope. Thank goodness it was in a small motif at the corner, and on muslin, so all was not lost. But I learned not to keep my pens and pencils in the same area as regular ones.

I once got one of those rare "factory mix-up" marking pens that the packaging said was supposed to disappear with water. Spent a whole morning stenciling a pattern into a medallion center...only to have it fade away by that very evening. Ye gads, was I upset!!! :shock:

At my Fiber Arts class in October the teacher had us mark the fabic with a chalk pencil she'd bought in the Art dept at a hobby store. I had to go and buy them (I'm a gadget junkie). These are wonderful, they come in black or white and are so...I don't have the right word...clear or dark, very easy to see your markings. I don't have to destroy my fabric for a faint line. It's made by Conti or Conte. A two pack ran about $5. which I thought was a little high, but I found a coupon to really help!! I don't know about washing away, I use it to mark designs on the back of fabric to cut out or in places that will be cut out and they work like a dream!! I'd never thought to go to the art dept!! lol

Kathy, The white pen that Boo sugested is the way to go.It works wonderfully.The lines are thin , crisp and remove easily. Happy Quilting. :D :D Pam

I understand that there are two problems with the blue pen, one which you found out, may have been caused if it was placed where light was on it for extended time, sunlight has a tendency to "set' the markings and it takes the soap to remove it, as you found. The other is when by regret water gets spilt on it and it all runs or fades out...In either case....it has been left up to Murphy's Law to determine which will work for you. :-) Glad to hear you did get it out. Best thing to do is use a scrap to test it on before use.

There's a neat new product called Mr.Clean's Eraser. Beleive it or not, it works great on lifting markings right off quilts. I've used it and it really works! I moisten it with a little water and gently rub. I also use the new sharp roller yellow chalk. My husband found it on our last shop hop weekend. I can see it without a problem! Hope this helps!
Louise

I also made the mistake of using blue chalk marking a wall hanging (my first). I've tried everything and there's still faint blue lines on only one section (I didn't use it any other place). I'm going to try Mr. Clean eraser. Thanks for that tip

What a great idea. I just bought a package of two. I think I will tuck one away with my quilting supplies...just in case.

Do you mean Mr. Clean like the cleaning liquid? If it is, I would be nervous of putting such strong chemicals on my fabric, unless it was a last resort.

The Mr. Clean Eraser looks like a sponge. Comes in package of 2 in the same section as other cleaning products.

Does anyone know about where to find the white markers boo was talking about :D :?:

I used the white marker from Clover, it's kind of weird to use at first because the line takes a few seconds to appear. I bought it a merchant at a quilt show. I marked my handquilting with it and it worked great on batik, however one pen didn't last me a whole queen size quilt drawing double hearts on 288 squares.

I was going to share the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser idea, but I see it's already been done. :LOL: I read it in a mag, and have not actually tried it.
I did have an e-mail about the Magic Erasers, though, with a not-so-good note.....they can cause chemical burns on children! I have not looked into this to see if it is true, but I keep mine out of the kids' reach! The pics in the e-mail were really gruesome! I guess it can be an adult, too, but kids are the ones that rub stuff on them, usually. I know not e-mail stuff is true, but ....just FYI......

It's like an eraser. I'm going to practice on some scraps before I use it on a precious quilt.

Ladies, I'm still using chalkboard chalk - easy, washes out, inexpensive. Am finding it is perfect for all of the fabrics I have used.

Even used it on an expensive dress I got off of the sale rack (is there any other way to buy????) to mark my hem and it came right out.

Found that the light colors (pink, yellow, blue, green) work good on light fabrics. White on the dark ones.

I think I have found them....what I have found is a White Writer Fine Tip Pen by Wrights...brush tip draws a thin or thick line.marker writes invisibly but appears white as ink dries. Marks disappear with ironing or rinsing..store with cap down....
regular price is $3.98...special $2.98..item number 201016
toll free ordering: 1.800.772.2891
clotilde.com
outside US: 903.636.4094

I will try to get some of these in my stock later on...when I get built up on fabrics and things...