Sunday, April 11, 2010

Thread

I got started on my quilt as you go log cabin and it was fun to do!  Im excited to get thru some of my scraps and Im excited to work on birthday presents for my nephews!!  But I am learning that I really do need to learn something about thread.  I have always just used whatever I had on hand...garage sale threads, hand me down threads...you name it...but now I am wondering, from you...can you suggest a thread I ought to be using for my everyday quilting?  Im not entering any contests or submitting quilts to magazines, im just quilting for pleasure...what thread should I use??


I made it to a rummage sale yesterday...Colette came with me so we bought a few extras that we definitely did NOT need, but I found this piece of linen that I really like.  I don't know much about linen, no idea if this is good quality or not, but I plan to use some in the log cabin quilt because I know I won't have enough light colored fabrics to get to the end of the project!  Anyone know much about linen? 

7 comments:

  1. I use Mettler thread for all of my piecing. I use mostly Superior threads for my quilting, but that's because it's done on the longarm!
    If I'm quilting on my domestic I use either Mettler or Sulky Blendables or both.
    I don't suggest using hand-me-down or garage sale thread because there is a chance that they are very, very old. This presents a few problems... Aged thread gets dry and brittle and the fibers begin to sort of break down so they're not as strong and you end up with a lot of thread breaks and whatnot. Some people get around this issue by spraying their threads (or what they're quilting) with a spray bottle of water as they go. This is a bad idea because when the thread dries, it's still going to be dried out and brittle! Why would you want to put that work into it for it to fall apart?
    Also, with older threads, the colors may have faded so if you run out in the middle of a project and end up needing more, the chances of being able to buy the same product and get a color match are low. Luckily usually the amount of color fading you see with thread is minimal and you usually can't really tell.
    Happy quilting!

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  2. I always use Guttermans or Mettler thread on my projects, from piecing to quilting to hand sewing. I buy it from Joann's or the local quilt shop. It's more expensive, but definitely worth the cost.

    Great way to use up some of your scraps with those fun log cabin blocks.

    I have linen a little, mixed in with quilting cotton projects. It feels a little more stretchy than cotton, and it's thicker. Love the piece you found.

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  3. I was going to mention that I used to use Gutterman but I started noticing that it seemed to nest more than Mettler, so I made the offical switch. But Gutterman is good too!

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  4. Hey Jenny! Your nephews are just going to adore their new quilts! Nice job! Your blog isn't listed in your profile on Flickr, I followed u here through your comment on my blog! I use Gutermann thread, the poly...I started using Coats and Clark, but it kept breaking in my machine. I purchase mine at Joann's, they're usually on sale every other week for 40% off and sometimes you get coupons in the mail for a % off total purchase, can't beat that! =)

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  5. I don't remember what I used in fir my first quilt, but I remember using about 4 spools for piecing and quilting.....then I discovered Connecting Threads(dot)com.
    1200yds for less until $2.00/spool....and orders $50.00 or more FREE shipping....so i've bought several thread sets, which I'm stilling using a year later.

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  6. Hi Jenny! Listen to Lisa. She's my long-arm quilter and she's awesome at it. I personally use Mettler or Gutterman (just a little) or Prestiq if I can find it. I go through a lot of thread, but I just don't get the same results with Coats and Clark etc. For one thing, it breaks too much and my tension is not as even. Hope that helps. The blocks are cute!

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  7. I use Mettler for piecing and Superior (King Tut and Bottom Line) for quilting along with the Sulky rayon.

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