While I’ve been sewing, I’ve built up a small collection of fabric marking tools, some that get used a lot, some hardly ever. But recently I discovered a surprising new favourite – a slither of soap!
I got the tip from Kathy Ruddy in the Craftsy class One Pattern, Many Looks: Pants and only recently tried it, but love it already! The soap glides very easily over the fabric and you can easily create a thin but distinct line. You can also be confident that it will completely wash out.
As I’ve tried a few different methods for marking fabric, I thought I’d do a quick run through of how I find them to work with:
Air erasable fabric pen
- Use frequently
- Pros: glides fairly easily over the fabric to create a smooth line
- Cons: only one colour so not useful on darker fabrics; with some fabrics it can fade pretty quickly so you need to reapply and/or only use with projects that will be made in a short period of time; if high accuracy is required, the mark created may be too thick
Chalk pencils
- Use frequently, but generally just for making small marks unless the fabric is very stable
- Pros: good control over mark size, mark doesn’t fade or brush off through normal fabric handling
- Cons: need to use reasonable pressure to make mark which can pull fabric out of shape
Clover Chaco line pen
- Use occasionally
- Pros: can make a good mark with light pressure, so does not distort the fabric
- Cons: if you aren’t careful, the chalk can smudge or get a bit messy
Dressmakers carbon paper
- Only used once or twice
- Pros: creates a neat marking (dots rather than a line)
- Cons: I found it a bit tedious to use; I also prefer making a line than the dots this created, especially if you are using fabric with a busy pattern as the dots could easily get lost
Soap slither
- New, but expect to be frequent
- Pros: easily glides over fabric; can create a thin line; easily washes out
- Cons: wouldn’t work on light coloured fabrics unless I can find a dark coloured soap; not useful if you will still need the marking after pressing as it quickly faded under the steam
Thread (using a running stitch)
- Use frequently
- Pros: Won’t disappear or fade (I join the ends together to be sure that it won’t get pulled out accidentally); easy to remove
- Cons: takes longer as I typically use one of the other methods to draw a line first and then stitch over it
Do you have a favourite fabric marker? Have you discovered any regular household objects that make good sewing accessories?
A great little post. I have read about using soap but never used it – I may give it a try on my next project. What are you making at the moment?
The fabric in the first photo is for a second Colette Laurel dress that I’ve recently finished – looking forward to sharing it here once I’ve got some pictures taken! I’m now at the toile stage of a new dress that I’m drafting myself following the pattern cutting class, could be a while until that one gets finished though!
Thanks for this – I’m going to give soap a try next time
Hope you like it Janet, I was amazed at how well it worked!