PatternReview.com online sewing community
Online Sewing Class: Sewing Basics
Register Today!
Join our community of 579,280 sewists!
SIGNUP Membership is free and includes 1 free lesson
Login |
Join our community of 579,280 sewists!
Signup | Login
To participate in the PatternReview.com forums please Login or Join PatternReview
123 
Member since 7/16/07
Posts: 30023
Send Message
Posted on: 3/16/08 6:12 PM ET
I'm about to tear out my hair -- marking normal triangular darts without decent transfer paper is fairly straightforward (make tiny snips at the bottom two edges, mark the top of the dart with a little piece of thread, and join the dots). But marking long, odd-shaped waist darts is quite another thing. The chalk paper I have does NOTHING -- you can't even see the alleged "mark." I've tried several different colors, to no avail. Why did they do away with the kind they used to make, and why do people put up with its invisible-chalk replacement? Sorry for the rant -- I was feeling quite upbeat about sewing today until I got to dart-marking. I checked with an online notions store (can't remember which one -- one in Canada, I think) and they said their paper was wax-free, so I assume the wax stuff has gone the way of the dodo.

------
my shield and my very great reward ~ Gen. 15:1

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
If you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid. ~ Albert Einstein

People have a way of becoming what you encourage them to be, not what you nag them to be. ~ Scudder N. Parker
  
Member since 6/23/04
Posts: 4892
Body Type:
Send Message
Posted on: 3/16/08 6:55 PM ET
In reply to Vintage Joan
>>The chalk paper I have does NOTHING

Which brand are you using? I use Clover's Chacopy paper, with their blunt tracing wheel, with great success. It makes very clear marks on all sorts of fabrics. I don't know if it's wax or not but it's certainly feels like the wax carbon papers I used in the 70's. It can be a little diffcult to remove the marks when finished which makes me think it's wax, but I could be wrong.
------
Belinda. Melbourne, Australia
http://sew-4-fun.blogspot.com/
  
Member since 7/16/07
Posts: 30023
Send Message
Posted on: 3/16/08 7:24 PM ET
In reply to Sew4Fun
Quote:
Which brand are you using?

It's the only brand they sell of this paper around here -- Unique. The other notions I've tried from that same company are OK, but the paper is horrible. Honestly, I've had a few pieces of this paper that didn't even have chalk on them -- they were just colored paper!
I guess this means I'm going to have to start buying transfer paper on line. Thanks for the recommendation!! I'm sure I'll find Chacopy paper somewhere on the Internet, with any luck maybe even from a Canadian company (but I won't get my hopes up about that part).
P.S Aaargh -- "A Great Notion" in BC does carry it, but the shipping to Ontario is $9.75 -- roughly the same as the cost of two packages of tracing paper! Forget that, I'll keep looking.
-- Edited on 3/16/08 7:35 PM --
------
my shield and my very great reward ~ Gen. 15:1

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
If you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid. ~ Albert Einstein

People have a way of becoming what you encourage them to be, not what you nag them to be. ~ Scudder N. Parker
  
Member since 9/19/06
Posts: 1873
Body Type:
Send Message
Posted on: 3/16/08 7:34 PM ET
Greenberg and Hammer has the old wax based tracing paper. They sell it by the sheet, under the heading Professional Tracing paper, and it comes in 4 colors - yellow, white, red and dk blue.
They are in NYC, but have a website and you can order from them by phone or internet.

------
Marji

  
Member since 7/16/07
Posts: 30023
Send Message
thumbsup 1 like
Posted on: 3/16/08 7:36 PM ET
In reply to Marji
OK, I'll check them too -- I hope their shipping costs aren't as high. Thanks!
ETA:
Update on the Chacopy paper -- it's sold at some quilting stores not too far from here, so I may not need to have it shipped. And it just dawned on me (duh!!) that we have a fabric store right in town that specializes in quilting supplies, so I'll call tomorrow and see if they carry Chacopy or another good brand. They must -- no self-respecting quilter would use this "invisible chalk" paper.
-- Edited on 3/16/08 7:53 PM --
------
my shield and my very great reward ~ Gen. 15:1

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
If you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid. ~ Albert Einstein

People have a way of becoming what you encourage them to be, not what you nag them to be. ~ Scudder N. Parker
  
Member since 8/12/02
Posts: 2939
Send Message
Posted on: 3/16/08 7:38 PM ET
I have bought that same waxed tracing paper from the Bookstore at FIT in New York. Have you tried some of the Canadian design schools? They might have it in the bookstores, and you won't have to deal with customs and cross-border delays.

HTH
  
Member since 7/13/07
Posts: 6482
Body Type:
Send Message
Posted on: 3/16/08 7:54 PM ET
Joan, it's a bit tedious as you can only mark one pattern piece at a time, but I've been thread tracing darts. I pin down the middle of the dart - a solid line of pins. Then I fold the pattern paper back along the stitching line of the dart. If the stitching line is curved, you may have to fold it back progressively to follow the curve. Then I thread trace along the folded edge. When one side is done, I repeat it on the other side. You get faster with practice and I'm a lot more accurate with this style of marking than with tracing wheel and paper.
------
Paula

"In Seattle you haven't had enough coffee until you can thread a sewing machine while it's running."
- Jeff Bezos, Amazon.com founder

Visit my blog at www.sewconfused.blogspot.com
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/paulag1955/sewing-inspiration/
  
Member since 7/16/07
Posts: 30023
Send Message
Posted on: 3/16/08 8:02 PM ET
In reply to GorgeousFabrics
I'm not familiar with our design schools, I have to admit. I think I may be onto something with my lead about quilting supply stores, though. Even if I don't find anything right in town, there's bound to be something fairly local -- this area has a large Mennonite & Amish population, and they're famous for their quilts.
------
my shield and my very great reward ~ Gen. 15:1

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
If you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid. ~ Albert Einstein

People have a way of becoming what you encourage them to be, not what you nag them to be. ~ Scudder N. Parker
  
Member since 7/16/07
Posts: 30023
Send Message
Posted on: 3/16/08 8:14 PM ET
In reply to Sew Confused
Thanks, Paula. These particular darts are really weird-shaped, though, so putting pins down the middle wouldn't really help. (I remember when the dart markings on pattern pieces included that center line, don't you? I guess they're saving on ink nowadays.)
...The darts on this pattern are about 1/2" apart at the bottom, then the lines get wider, run parallel for an inch or so, then get narrower and taper off. I toyed with the idea of stitching through the tracing paper, then just tearing away the paper, but I don't want to wreck the pattern piece. I guess I could copy the darts onto a separate piece of tissue... but I think now I'll just wait until tomorrow and see if I can get decent tracing paper at a quilting store, fingers crossed.


-- Edited on 3/16/08 8:16 PM --
------
my shield and my very great reward ~ Gen. 15:1

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
If you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid. ~ Albert Einstein

People have a way of becoming what you encourage them to be, not what you nag them to be. ~ Scudder N. Parker
  
Member since 7/13/07
Posts: 6482
Body Type:
Send Message
Posted on: 3/16/08 8:17 PM ET
In reply to Vintage Joan
Joan, it will still work. I just run the pins down the middle to keep the tissue from shifting. Just pin the tissue any way you need to to keep it from moving, then fold it back along the lines...it beats waiting for different tracing paper!
------
Paula

"In Seattle you haven't had enough coffee until you can thread a sewing machine while it's running."
- Jeff Bezos, Amazon.com founder

Visit my blog at www.sewconfused.blogspot.com
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/paulag1955/sewing-inspiration/
  
123 
* Advertising and soliciting is strictly prohibited on PatternReview.com. If you find a post which is not in agreement with our Terms and Conditions, please click on the Report Post button to report it.
Selected Reviews, Classes & Patterns