Quilt Marking Tools

Quilting takes a lot of concentration, so you can’t always rely on your memory to keep track of where this or that stitch needs to start—or stop! That’s what quilt marking tools are for!

Fabric marking tools are used by quilters to mark patterns, cutting lines, stitching lines, and other necessary guidelines on fabric before and during the quilting process. This type of sewing notion is handy for transferring pattern notations and to show you where to cut, fold, and place! Good examples of quilting marking tools are chalk pencils and tailor’s chalk. Heat erasable pens are another favorite fabric marking tools among quilters - you can draw lines that disappear like magic when you iron your fabric!

If you’re just starting out quilting or sewing, you might be wondering what the best marking tool for quilting is. Like most quilting notions, there isn’t a “better” or “best” tool for fabric marking—the quilting supplies you use will usually depend on personal preference, as well as the project you’re making!

While no fabric marking tool is “better” than the other, there are quilting marking tools that are better for certain jobs. Chalk pencils, for example, are generally great for most projects because once you don’t need the marks anymore, you can easily brush them away. So if you’re wondering what you can use to mark fabric, chalk pencils are great to use with quilting stencils. Same goes for the question of how to mark quilting or sewing lines on fabric—chalk pencils, tailor’s chalk, and quilt marking templates will do the job splendidly.

You may be wondering how you would mark quilting lines on dark fabrics, and you’ll be happy to know that you can use chalk for darker materials too! See? The world of marking tools isn’t so scary. And if you want your markings to stay or you wish to draw on your fabric, fabric pens (or fabric markers) are the tool you want! Permanent fabric markers are a great way to a personal touch to your projects with hand-drawn embellishments or custom quilt labels.

But how do you mark a quilt for machine quilting? This is when you probably don’t want your markings to stick around, so the best quilt stencil marking tool for machine quilting would be fabric pencils that fade away on their own or easily wash out. You can find these handy pencils and all your other fabric marking needs here at Missouri Star!