The thread

I am really glad I wrote that post about thread and, wow, so many responses! And most of you felt like I do about all that fancy, expensive thread. That was really heartening. Sometimes, even though my gut says there is something fishy going on, I feel like the clod who doesn't get what all the cool quilters are using and loving. I have to remind myself that, as Kristen said, it is more than an art form, it is a competitive market and we are the suckers customers. But I find myself frequently a little out of step with the cool quilters anyway, so it's nothing new.

I do need to mention, regarding the comments, that I know nothing about long-arm quilting machines and what their thread requirements are. I am just talking about those of us who are slaving away at our little Berninas and Janomes and such. And for the commenter who said that spools of the expensive thread go farther than spools of cheaper thread, so are therefore not really so much more expensive, I was comparing cost by yards of thread, not spools, so I'm not buying your theory.

Mary asked about my favorite threads. OK. Here they are.

I have always really liked Star thread. It is all long staple cotton and comes on these nice big (1200 yd.) spools. I used to buy it in a million different colors at Oregon Tailor Supply and it was really cheap. Oregon Tailor Supply went out of business and Star was purchased by Coats and Clark. It is now much harder to find and when I do I usually find only a small selection of colors and it is more expensive than it used to be, but I still like it and buy it when I can find it.

Guterman and Mettler both come on these skinny spools. I used to sell the Mettler in my shop years ago and it was considered a premium thread at the time. I buy Guterman at Joannes when it is on sale. They seem very similar to me.

Coats and Clark is not a favorite, not because it doesn't work well in my sewing machine, but because it seems the most tangly for hand-sewing. But it is ubiquitous and comes in a million colors and works fine, IMO. I think it gets an undeserved bad rap. I especially like the design of their new spools (the two frontmost spools) They have a nice groove around each end that the thread end can easily be secured in. Much better than the sharp little notch in the old spools.

Sulky 12 weight topstitch thread is my gourmet indulgence. It is a thicker thread and I like it for the wild and crazy decorative stitching I do on some of my pieces. It is expensive by my standards, but much less than a yard of fabric! It has the same kind of spool, with the nifty place to secure the thread end, as the Coats and Clark thread.

This is the oldest spool of thread in my thread drawers. It could be 50 years old or more and is on a wooden spool. The brand is Talon. Do they even make thread anymore? Can you see the price? Twenty nine cents—now you're talkin'! I wouldn't actually use it. You can snap it very easily. But I like having it roll around with my other threads.

Today I ordered some thread from Connecting Threads. It is their own brand—Essential Thread. I have heard good and not-so-good reviews, but the colors look great, the folks who like it really like it and the price is really good. I will let you know if it is OK.

One more comment on the comments. One commenter said that maybe the people who were experiencing lint problems with their thread just weren't cleaning their machines often enough. Bam! Exactly right. I sweep out all the lint—and it isn't that much unless I am sewing an extra linty fabric—every time I change my bobbin. That little lint brush lives right next to my sewing machine.

And, if this thread discussion hasn't already shown you what a bargain shopper I am, look at these—

I found these irresistible bright red ceramic flower pots at the Dollar Store. Perfect for markers, scissors, pencils and cutting tools.

For my non-sewing readers, I can only imagine how geeky two whole blog posts about thread must seem...