I can see the adhesive being helpful in holding a permanent pattern down on the fabric, but then there's an issue of storing the pattern once it has adhesive on it especially over time and poster board against poster board being pressed against one another.



Professionals use pattern weights and tailor's chalk (or a pencil or whatever), and it's quick to mark the outline of a pattern onto the fabric. All you need are a few cans of tomato paste ($0.33/each; or whatever it is that you'd like to use to weight your pattern down) and tailor's chalk ($1; or a pencil for $0.10).



Another reason to use the pattern weights has to do with matching fabric prints. It's pretty easy to slide a permanent pattern around on fabric, but it's trickier to reposition a permanent pattern with adhesive on it - you'll have to pull the whole thing up repeatedly and carefully make sure the entire thing is pulled the way you want it for the entire pattern piece before laying the pattern on the fabric.



And then there's an issue of what the adhesive might do to organza or any of the sheer fabrics.



It might be useful if you're doing a line of solid color broadcloth dresses and need to cut out all the pieces in a day. I imagine my mother would have loved to have had a permanent pattern with table adhesive applied to it when she was sewing a bunch of skirts and caplets for a children's Christmas chorus performance. However, I don't know if it would be a good thing in the long-term generally. I guess it would heavily depend on what your needs were. Making a ton of bags with irritating pattern pieces? Go for it. Making a floral-print satin and organza ball gown? Avoid it.

