Many of us have a great stash of
quilt fabric, but what does your thread stash look like? If you ask a
room full of quilters about what thread to use or not use, you're likely to get
a different opinion from everyone in the room. I go by a few simple guidelines.
1. For piecing quilts, my
favorite thread is Aurifil 50wt cotton. This 2 ply thread is made of long
staple Egyptian cotton fibers. When you press your seams, Aurifil lies
very flat. Aurufil 50wt is also wonderful for machine quilting detailed areas
that require backtracking, such as with feathers and heavy background quilting.
2. For quilting, I try
everything that looks good to me. Sometimes that means a cotton
variegated, cotton solid, rayon, silk, and yes, even polyester thread.
Superior Threads makes a wonderful 40wt variegated tri-lobal polyester thread
called "Rainbows." Isacord makes a great 40wt solid polyester thread
that many machine embroiderers use in place of rayon. It has the shine of
rayon but rayon can break down over time when exposed to light. Silk thread is
beautiful for heirloom quilting.
Ultimately, I believe what thread
to use comes down to what you AND your machine like. Some machines don't
like some threads. High quality threads are made from the longest
fibers. Low quality threads are made from the leftover shorter
fibers. When the short fibers are twisted, they are much like when you
braid your hair and get down to the end with all of the short pieces sticking
out. These short pieces are called "barbs" and result in thread
breaks and weak stitches as well as lots of lint in your machine.
One more word about polyester
thread as quoted from Superior Threads:
"The stories we hear are
mostly myths handed down from earlier generations. Back in Grandma's time, most
of the available thread was cotton and the quilting was usually done along the
pieced seams, or "stitch in the ditch." Times have changed and
machine quilting has opened up a new world. No longer is quilting done only
along the seams. Machine stitching can enhance the beauty of the quilt by
adding intricate and complementary designs throughout the entire quilt. Machine
quilting does not add stress to the quilt. The stress points remain in the
piecing. Some say that polyester thread is too strong and will tear the fabric.
If the fabric ever tears as a result of heavy use, most likely it will
tear at the seams. The seams are the true stress points of a quilt,
not the machine quilted areas."
So there you have it. My
advice is to try as many high quality threads as you can and decide for
yourself what YOU like. Besides, a good thread stash will look great on a
thread rack hanging on the wall in your studio!
Sheri Lilienthal
Fabrics Unlimited
155 Shady Lane
Stateline, NV 89449
775-588-3211
