Have you ever tried using Dressmakers carbon paper? I hadn’t tried it before but have been meaning to try it for years since I read this blog post from TATB in 2014! It’s only taken five years but I’ve finally given it a try and I can confirm – it works great!
I was sent some of the Hemline tools to have a go with and I am so glad I did as I think they will be amazing when tracing patterns that are layered like you might find in Burda Magazine or sewing books like the Tilly and the Buttons ones. This allows you to trace the patterns without damaging or marking the pattern sheets in any way. You could choose to trace them directly onto the fabric you want to cut or could trace them onto some paper/Swedish Tracing Paper to keep as a seperate copy of the pattern.
I wasn’t sure if it would make much of a mark so I chose to use the red carbon paper on the white reverse of this printed jersey I am using and it’s really clear! The pack comes with four colours – red and navy blue for use on lighter fabrics and has yellow and white which I would assume would show up on darker fabrics.
It’s simple to use – you put the carbon paper face down on the fabric that you want to mark, pop the pattern piece down on top of it and trace around it using the blunt tracing wheel. If you want to watch a video tutorial on how to use these then I can highly recommend this vlog from Sarah of Like Sew Amazing. She shows you how to use it really clearly!
If I had one criticism, I wish the carbon paper pieces were bigger as I was only tracing children’s patterns and still had to move them around. It wasn’t difficult I am just mentioning it because I am lazy!
I love that the people at Hemline went to the effort to making the tracing tool really pretty. It doesn’t affect functionality but it’s nice to have nice things isn’t it?! You might notice in this picture that my hands and the tool are going a bit red from handling the red carbon paper. I wouldn’t use this method if I was handling something crazy delicate like white silk (but then again when am I ever going to be using white silk?! I’m not insane!). I made sure to wash my hands afterwards and it seemed to wash right off.
Let me know if you’ve tried this and have any other favourite methods for tracing patterns by leaving a comment below.
For more information on Hemline products, feel free to email: groves@stockistenquiries.co.uk
Disclaimer: ⭐️Dressmakers Carbon and Tracing Wheel were provided free of charge in exchange for a review. All opinions are totally my own, and I wouldn’t recommend something I didn’t like!
Making and Books 