Does anyone have experience with using a pastel gel pen for marking a design on dark fabric for backbasting (or some other use)? As long as the ink is archival, it ought to be all right, wouldn't you think? It doesn't matter if it doesn't wash out, since it will be on the back. It sure is easier to see on black than either the Clover pen or a white marking pencil! Or does someone else have a white marking tool they like better. (I don't think chalk would work, since the piece will be handled during a long applique process.)
I have used the pastel gel pens for marking 'dots' on dark quilt pieces with great success. There's the possibility that the gel could bleed. The Fons & Porter, er... do they call their white pen 'ceramic'? That works well too. The pens themselves didn't. I bought two and enjoyed them while they lasted. Their innards were rather flimsy; very annoying since they're so expensive. It's a carry-over from dressmaking but my always favorite is plain old slivers of bath soap. I keep a little bag of them in the refrigerator. When one gets soft from hand heat, I replace it with the next leftover. If you can figure out how to just use soap, you will know that the marks are safe and will wash out. Tell us about your appliqué project. What are you up to? Polly
The white pencils drive me bonkers. The mechanical ones are a lot less crazy making than the wood ones though. The leads just wear down so fast, and are so prone to breaking when you sharpen them.
For something simple that I can mark as I go, I use chalk. If it is complicated, but still a mark as I go project, I will use a white or sanguine Conte crayon. They stick a bit better than chalk, but still wash out if you don't bear down hard and drive them into the fibers. White Conte pastel pencils work also, but then you have the whole sharpening issue again.
If I need to mark a whole quilt or something that will get a lot of handling before I am done in advance, I tend to prefer dressmakers carbon. Most of the colors show well on darks, and it washes out reliably so long as you avoid the cheap waxy stuff. You don't need to use a wheel, though if you are marking a grid or continuous lines that are not too complicated a wheel can save a fair bit of time. You can use it just like old fashioned carbon paper and just slip it under a pattern sheet and draw over the lines with a pen, pencil, or stylus. You just want to be sure that everything is flat and your are working on a hard surface. Oh and that you have the carbon paper turned carbon side to the fabric. (Who me? would I do something so silly as to have my carbon flipped wrong way up? Dumb, de dumb de dumbity dee...)
If you don't have to worry about shadow lines, washable crayons are great. Inexpensive too. If you have a big project they would definitely be worth testing. Most of the time they do wash out completely. I got best results from these three, Faber-Castell, Crayoloa, and Prang Payons, in that order. The even cheaper washable crayons are much more prone to leaving shadows. Again, you want to use as light a hand as you can manage.
Cretacolor Aquamonolith pencils work well sometimes, but it takes experimentaion. They don't work on all fabrics, and on some fabrics they sometimes leave shadows.
So far as gel pens, I don't hesitate to use them on clothing. But I expect clothing to have a much shorter life span than quilts. My basic rule is never use an ink or paint that does not give adequete archival information. Acid Free and archivally sound often (not always) mean that they won't eat your fabric. The original gel pens are Jelly Rolls from Sakura. Sakura also makes Pigma Pens, so it is a decent possibilty that they won't harm fabric.
If you aren't worried about washing, you can check to see if your colored pencils mark easily on fabric. Some are soft enough to mark well. Regular crayons are a good bet too.
I like the peach Prisma colored pencils for marking quilting designs on just about any color. They don't rub off easily. They should work for your appliqué project. The peach works well on both dark and light. I have never had a problem with not washing out. They are in the art supplies department at Michael's and Hobby Lobby. I learned about these pencils from someone in this group.
Julia > Does anyone have experience with using a pastel gel pen for marking a
Monique, I use pastel gel pens to mark lines that I -want- to be -permanent-. When dried and then heat-set, they are impossible to remove, which in my case is desirable --- I just used a Sakura white "Gelly Roll" pen that I bought for $1.49 at Michael's to write the maker's names on the mottled brown batik stems of 42 maple leaf blocks for our guild's next raffle quilt.
InspirePoint website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here.
All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.