Writing and drawing on felt might seem a bit tricky because of its fuzzy surface. But, it is actually not hard at all when you use permanent markers or fabric markers! I used the former (Sharpies) for this post, but I’ve read that fabric markers also work well, and they seem to be better if you will want to wash the articles that you write or draw on.
A few things to remember when using permanent markers on felt:
1. Draw/write without pausing. When the tip of a marker stays in one spot too long, the ink spreads and also bleeds through to the other side of the felt (possibly marking your work surface).
2. DO NOT touch the ink right after applying it onto the felt; it will not dry immediately. After a few minutes, however, it should be completely dry.
3. When different colors touch one another in a design, let the ink of one color dry completely before applying the next color to avoid unwanted mixing of the colors.
Because the blue petals of the flower on the left were drawn immediately after the yellow center, the two colors got mixed. The flower on the right, on the other hand, has a clean yellow center because I waited a few minutes to add the petals after making the yellow circle.
(Note: The orange and white pieces of felt in the above photos are a wool and synthetic blend, whereas the pink is 100% wool. As you can see, the Sharpie markers worked equally well on both types of felt.)
I was a little nervous about drawing patch marks onto the white Simply Simple Dog that I recently made. But in the end, I was very happy with how I transformed it into a lovely Dalmatian in a matter of minutes!
That said, I do NOT recommend using permanent markers to temporarily mark felt for sewing or cutting.
For temporary markings that need to be erased later, a tracing pencil rubs off the felt quite easily (See the photo of the shell of the Tardy Tortoise finger puppet on the right). If drawing on the reverse side of the felt, you can also use a regular pencil. Here are a few more suggestions.
For cutting out felt pieces, you don’t even have to draw their outlines onto the felt. Instead, I recommend using freezer paper. Trace the patterns onto the matt side of the freezer paper, iron it onto the felt, and cut out the patterns without having to mark the felt!
Happy crafting!