A tape measure is all you need. It seems a bit cheaply made, but not in a way that I wouldn't expect it to last. It's made from a smooth rubber material with fibers laced through it to keep it from stretching. The print is not very clear or straight, but this item is made for sewing, not jet engine components. The numbers (on the inch side) are huge and should be easy to read, even for those with poor eyesight. Marker pens aren't that good. In my experience, to leave a visible mark, you either have to press hard or rock back and forth several times. For straight lines (where you can hold the fabric with a ruler) or small marks (where you can just gently move the tip back and forth until you get a visible mark) this isn't that big of a deal, but for small notes. or draw freehand curves, they're just not very useful. Normally, if you press hard enough to make a mark in one pass, the tip will pull and deform the fabric. Of course, your mileage may vary depending on the material you're working with, but as general-purpose fabric marking tools I don't see them as very useful. In short, consider it a decent tape measure with a couple of pencils as a bonus. If you want to take notes I would use a disappearing ink marker or a simple chalk pen. If you're primarily looking for something to draw outlines for cutting and sewing, the best solution I've found is a chalk roller like the Clover Chaco Liner: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0017G8Q3O/
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