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Pattern Paper overview

4/26/2017

11 Comments

 
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I am a member of PatternReview.com. If you don't know about it, you might want to check it out. Members write reviews of patterns and sewing machines. There are occasional fun competitions, it is a great place to buy all brands of patterns and, if you choose, a daily email is sent with updates of all these things along with a discussion board. I look at it everyday. And yesterday someone wrote with questions about where to buy Oak Tag for making patterns. There seemed to be a lot of confusion about what it really is. So I thought I would talk about a variety of paper used for making patterns and why.
Oak Tag is also called Tag Board or Manila.
It is similar to the paper used to make a manila folder, but a bit lighter in weight. It is not the same as poster board.
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 In professional sample rooms it is used to make slopers or any other pattern that is going to used again and again. Since it is too thick to pin through, an Oak Tag pattern must be held down with weights and then traced around. When tracing onto fabric, you probably wouldn't use a Sharpie! A pencil or fabric marker are good choices, depending.
These patterns are almost always stored on a rack  ...
like the photo above ... by punching a large hole near one corner ...
and using one of these hangers.
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Heavy Kraft paper is sometimes used in place of Oak Tag. This is what we used on the professional costume shops I worked in in New York.
With either Oak Tag or Kraft paper a notcher is really needed. The pattern above is a good example of all the places notches are used. Note that that pattern above has no seam allowance. Couture and a lot of professional costumes are made using patterns like this. Tracing the pattern onto the fabric gives exact stitching lines. The seam allowances need to be added on after tracing and then the piece is cut out.

These are the tools needed for working with Oak Tag. You can just get a notcher. But, also a tracing wheel with sharp pins for making perforations is good to have as well an an awl and hole punch. 
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This is Dot Paper, which is used when working on a design. Many people like the one inch grid made by all these numbers and crosses. This paper is opaque but thin enough to see through, which can make pattern making faster, if you can lay one piece under another to see if seams fit, for example. If the design will only be made a few times this paper is perfect. It is is a design destine for mass production it will be transferred to Oak Tag for tracing onto paper that is laid on stacked fabric then cut with a saw. OR there are probably even newer better ways I don't even know about.
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I use poster paper or lightweight drawing paper for almost all the drafting I do. It is similar in weight to Dot Paper, but cheaper and actually I don't like all those dots. You really don't need them if you have a good L-Square ruler.
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Here I am about 15 years ago, tracing my working patterns onto the large sheet that will be sent to Simplicity. All paper you see is poster paper, 36" wide. I do it exactly the same today.
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My newest discovery (3 years ago) is Medical Exam paper ... the stuff you sit on at the doctor's office. It is almost exactly the same as the tissue paper patterns are printed on, only just stiffer enough to make writing on it pretty easy. I use it when I am reworking or altering a pattern for myself because it is super easy to work with, folds down small for storage and is really cheap, especially if you buy a box of 12 rolls.
$9 for one roll ...
Be sure to get the smooth kind.

$41 for a dozen ... go in with some friends and save money.
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I started using it because of the patterning classes I've been teaching lately. This picture shows a sheet of medical paper laid over a print out of a 50% size patterns I use in my classes. Great stuff.

Now I know there are other things people use to make patterns ... Swedish Tracing paper and other sewable materials. But I don't use them, so don't feel I should comment. Please let me know if you use any of these things and what you think of them.

Having rolls of various kinds of paper around can be useful for other things, too.
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I use Oak Tag to cover my cutting table. (See picture at the top of my blog page) The kind I get is manilla on one side and pale green on the other. This picture was taken on a day when I was flipping it over for a clean surface.  The costume shops I worked in used Heavy Kraft paper to cover their cutting table. This kind of stuff lasts a long time, but is cheap enough to toss out and replace every so often.

And that Medical Exam paper is good for SO much stuff! I crumple it up for packing material and cut nice even sheets to use inside gift boxes. No one will ever know.
11 Comments
Lex
4/26/2017 06:07:13 am

I had to come here to comment on this. I buy low price lining paper in a DIY store. The B&Q Basic Lining paper rolls are ludicrously cheap, come in continuous lengths and are moderately thick - not quite as thin as poster paper nor as thick as Oak Tag, but it works really well for me. As a plus size woman I often find I have to add inches to commercial patterns - especially in the bust because the ratios of bust:waist:hips rarely match me.

I also occasionally use big A2 sketch pads or those A1 office flipchart books.

Reply
Andrea
4/26/2017 06:17:27 am

Do you have a web site or link for this paper?

Reply
Lex
4/27/2017 01:12:28 am

Oh it's nothing special - just standard wallpaper 'Lining' paper from any old DIY store.

This is the one I specifically referenced, but all DIY stores that sell wallpaper will sell Lining paper.

http://www.diy.com/departments/value-800-grade-lining-paper-l10m-w-540mm/36703_BQ.prd

Sally C. Fink link
4/26/2017 06:28:34 am

I use picnic table paper purchased from my local party supply house in a huge roll. It hangs on the wall in a horizontal dispenser (like a large paper towel rod on its side) at the end of my cutting table.

Reply
meescha dare link
4/26/2017 08:46:27 am

These are great suggestions! In school, we HAD to turn in patterns using tag board. I dislike this because patterns are hard to store this way (Well, I have limited space, if you have a hook somewhere that's amazing but I don't even have room for that!) Nowadays I tend to use
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007AH74VO/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1 which is pretty much what you suggested. (medical paper) I can make a lot of changes and it's cheap. I just wish I could get it a little wider but taping them together isn't a huge deal. :)

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Mi link
4/27/2017 08:49:28 am

I mostly use cheap wrapping paper or kraft paper but recently my grandfather called his local newspaper and asked to purchase end of bolt rolls. I guess they don't use the whole roll, when it's smaller than a certain size they just replace it. He said they asked $6/each and my roll has at least 20 yards on it. It's a great weight, I think similar to the medical paper you're using.

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Cahira
4/27/2017 12:43:18 pm

I am also on Pattern Review, and I love it (and have written some glowing reviews of at least a couple of your patterns...and have more staged and needing to be finished! :-) )

I like all these suggestions and am interested in the pattern fabric that some people use...because I have a tendency to rip things. And I figure a pattern cloth may be better than paper for me.

That being said, what I actually use is a large package of tissue paper that I buy from the local store in the gift wrap area (the sheets that are pre-cut for putting in gift bags). Generally, it works pretty well for me. But I definitely need a solution that's more durable.

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Remy
4/27/2017 03:00:41 pm

Do you have a link for patternreview.com, I was trying to find you but I couldn't.

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Andrea
4/28/2017 02:55:29 pm

The words pattern review in the first sentence of the blog is a hot link. Click on the words to go the website

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Theresa in Tucson
5/18/2017 07:10:51 pm

I found oak tag in 24 by 36" sheets at Kelly paper under the name "Domtar Colors Tag" several years ago. My late father had used oak tag in making up patterns for his machine shop; he was a hobby machinist. For most of my applications it works well and when I need a longer or wider piece I do the same thing the Big 4 pattern companies do and make reference marks where the pattern pieces must line up. When a pattern gets used several times it gets transferred to oak tag. For ordinary copying I use the tracing paper sold by Nancy's Notions or the canary tracing paper (up to 48" wide) found in most blueprint reproduction shops when I need large pieces.

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Crystal link
5/28/2017 08:02:22 pm

I used to work in a production sewing shop and used a saw very much like that for cutting out stacks of flannelette for cloth diapers :) We had to wear a chainmail glove while using it, which was a very good idea because I got my free hand a little too close to the blade on a couple of occasions.

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    I am a commercial pattern maker who is now "sewing over 50"!
    I love to sew and hope to encourage others to come back to sewing.
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