Tracing Paper

Scored a lot of several packets of vintage Dritz tracing paper from eBay a few months ago. Other than that found what I consider "tracing paper" rather hard to find. Stores kept offering me what the children use in school, which is not quite the same thing.

Candide

For marking fabric:

Dritz tracing paper:

a Dritz tracing wheel:

Beverly

Dear Ipierson,

I use Chacopaper, available at art supply stores. It disappears with a dab of water. But not for my sewing. Tracing darts and other symbols on your fabric almost insures that your darts are going to be too fat at the ends. The old Dritz paper is waxy, and could do permanent damage to some of your fabrics, particularly sheer fabrics. You would be better off snipping the legs of darts, and using a dot made with a disappearing pen. You can then aim at the dot, instead of slavishly following a line.

Teri

When I need to trace I now use "Chacopy tracing paper" at Nancy's Notions NAYY. I found it to be better than the Dritz paper and Dritz tracing wheel I'd used for many years, for me personally anyway. I also use the chalk pencils on delicate or nubby fabric I don't want to wheel over. I got the tracing wheel from N.N. as well, the edges aren't pointy sharp, kind of dull. They mark through to the fabric without tearing the pattern paper or leaving holes in the fabric if you put pressure on it. The Chacopy stays on the fabric quite well but it removes easily.

tried "the pounce' method I once saw demonstrated on some sewing show on TV but never found that IMO it worked all that well, to say nothing of the mess it made.

Val

Honestly, I've never really seen a good marking paper. The old waxy ones often stained the fabric and would not come out though I do still use them when that will not be a problem. The blue and purple ones, with ink like those blue and purple markers, were not very helpful because you had to wash both out before you could press the seam or dart or else the heat of the iron would make the markings permanent. Personally, I don't find the chalk papers much more effective that a hera marker but I do use them sometimes. For garments, I mostly take snips or do markings in the seam allowances with a piece of soap on dark items. For darts and other interior construction points, I almost always do thread markings or sew through actual tracing (not marking) paper to which I traced the dart or whatever plus a positioning mark.

Phae

Never underestimate good old tailor tacks for marking.......do they even teach how to do those anymore?

doesn't sound familiar to me. Please enlighten us! Cindy

lots of sites. There is good insturctioons here, scroll down the page to "Stitched markings":

Beverly

> shows lots of sites.>

oh Beverly, sometimes I feel so old *sigh*

Val

>> > shows lots of sites.> >

Come now, having acquired lots of knowledge doesn't mean one is "old". Rather it means one is knowledgeable/smart/savvy/with it/informed/aware/conversant/erudite/learned/proficient/up-to-date. I fully intend to continue learning new things and using my vast knowledge until the day I die. And that's at *least* thirty years off.

;-)

Beverly, feeling rather erudite herself at the moment.

"Phaedrine" > You will find instructions for tailor tacking in any good book on

I don't even bother with tracing paper unless there is a special design feature to mark that any other way would be untenable or time consuming. Tailor's tacks are the only way I mark darts anymore. Learned how to do them in junior high home ec class. Too many years ago to say. AK in PA

snipped-for-privacy@yabetcha.com Is this a local saying? or does it come from a tv shows' main character?

consuming.

Actually use tracing paper mostly for marking embroidery outlines. Marking darts and other things is best done with Tailor's tacks or other tricks of the trade. Tracing seam lines with tracing paper can be messy at best and can waste lots of time. Sewing straight seams is best accomplished with good technique, a machine that sews straight, and if required a seam guide.

Candide

Nearly everybody says to use multiple threads to make tailor tacks -- that makes no sense at all to me. A single thread shows up just fine

-- even when I use the thin two-ply thread I bought a cone of at a garage sale. (There is, of course, a risk that one might mistake a single-thread tack for lint and pick it off.)

Multiple threads do provide spares in case one pulls out -- but threads that went in together will pull out together. I take an extra stitch or two when I'm going to wool the fabric around.

Sharp scissors are essential. Chewing through the threads with dull snips is apt to pull them out.

It helps to use one spool for all marking -- and a different spool for basting. (And when one line of basting goes near another, and you plan to take one out and leave the other in, it's a help to change colors for the second baste.) On the other hand, you may want to color-code marks. (I can't offhand think of a situation, but there's bound to be one.)

Brilliant and dark colors of basting thread might rub off on the fabric; test them before using.

Use up mistakes and left-overs for basting and marking --- insisting on silk thread for marking and basting is pointless except when the fabric is delicate. If you do buy silk thread for basting, go whole hog and get #100. (On the one hand, #100 silk very weak -- on the other hand, if you leave some in a garment by mistake, nobody will ever notice.)

I prefer crewel needles because I have aging eyes, but when fine enough for basting, they tend to be ridiculous short. Milliner's needles, straw needles, and beading needles have a reasonable length in the finer sizes. (But none of them have stretched eyes!)

Joy Beeson