Thread
A. Hand Quilting Thread
I like to use a quilting thread color that is 3–4 shades deeper than the fabric on which I am quilting. The quilting itself causes an indentation that is slightly shadowed. By using a deeper color thread, the quilting design is enhanced, and the stitches have the appearance of being more even. Using a thread that is the same shade or lighter than your fabric can cause the stitches to appear as if they are closer to the surface, causing the design to be less apparent.
Linda Gabrielse, Kentwood, MI
I prefer Coats and Clark Cotton Hand quilting thread. It does not tangle or fray and it is super sturdy. I also love Mettler Cotton Quilting thread for the same reasons.
Nancy Henry, Rochester, NH
Pay attention to thread weight: the higher the number, the finer the thread.
Carolyn Vidal, Newport, WA
I like YLI thread that is already waxed. When I use Mettler 40, I wax it either with Heaven-sent or beeswax.
Vicki Strumpf, Osprey, FL
I like, and have used for years, YLI threads. They glide so easily through batting and fabric.
Leona Briggs, Needham, MA
I prefer 100% cotton hand quilting thread that has a natural shine to show off the stitches. While polyester core threads tend to be stronger, they can be too strong for cotton fabrics and actually damage the fabric.
Linnette Dowdell, Apopka, FL
I have learned that any thread is fine for hand quilting as long as I heavily wax it.
Kathy Perry, Sugar Land, TX
When choosing thread for hand quilting, always take into account the backing color of the quilt. I have a friend who is hand quilting with white thread on a quilt with a solid red backing. She is very unhappy with how easily her somewhat irregular stitches are showing. Even a grey or dark tan thread would have shown up less on the red backing and probably made her happier.
Nancy Swanwick, Fort Scott, KS
I made a “bug quilt” for my young grandson using bug fabric in a mason jar design. For his favorite jar, I used dark navy solid fabric and embroidered lightning bugs using glow-in-the-dark thread that he can only see at night.
Nancy Chase, Columbus, MT
B. Machine Quilting Thread
In machine quilting, use a finer thread in the bobbin so you will not have to change the bobbin so often.
Carole Wilder, Hastings, MN
I prefer Aurifil 100% cotton 50 weight thread for all my machine quilting. It is strong and creates a beautiful subtle stipple. It is also most compatible with my sewing machine and fine needles.
Linda Pace, McDonough, GA
I prefer to use interesting top threads, and Valdani Cottons 35 weight are my very favorite. They come in a great range of colors and variations. I almost always use bobbinfill, an extra-fine thread that won’t show on the top of the work. I use “Superior Threads The Bottom Line” by Libby Lehman which has the advantage of matching backing fabrics so well it is sometimes hard to see the stitches. Or I use Gutermann’s Skala 240 which comes on 5,000 meter rolls and is therefore very economical.
Sue Sacchero, Safety Bay, Australia
I now use a long-arm for most of my quilting, and I use all trilobal polyester. It is strong and comes in tons of luscious colors. When I machine quilt using my domestic sewing machine, the thread I choose really depends on how dense the quilting will be and if it is going to be a utility quilt or a decorative piece. My regular sewing machine prefers cotton thread, like Aurifil or Prescencia 60 weight.
Annemarie (Nancy) Poorbaugh, Montgomery, AL
I typically use cotton 40 weight for basic quilting and polyester 50 weight for denser quilting.
Keeley Levitsky, Pottstown, PA
The thread I choose for machine quilting depends on how much I want it to show. Silk or extra fine for high density quilting, Isacord poly for texture but not too much statement, and King Tut by Superior if I want the thread to make its own statement.
Patty Gertz, Ringoes, NJ
If I find that my thread is breaking in either the bobbin or needle, I know I have not got the same weight in each. Also, finer threads tend to break more easily if there is too much lint in and around the bobbin case. I find it best to clean and dust my machine before every project.
Linda Pace, McDonough, GA
Water-soluble thread is great for basting the quilt together or doing trapunto. Don’t wet your fingers to thread the needle—the saliva will dissolve the end of the thread! Wet your fingers and rub the needle, then thread. A white plastic bread-bag tab works great as a threading aid when you hold it in back of the needle—works for monofilament thread too! Keep water-soluble thread in a closed Ziploc bag when not using, or it will pick up the room’s moisture and start to weaken.
Loosen the top tension considerably, and don’t bother using water-soluble thread in the bobbin, because when the top thread dissolves, the bottom thread will just fall away. You don’t have to wash the quilt to remove the thread. You can spritz it.
Patty Gertz, Ringoes, NJ
Buy some chenille stems and use them to keep thread spools and their matching bobbins together in pairs.
Buy some chenille stems and use them to keep thread spools and their matching bobbins together in pairs. You will be able to locate the match-ups quickly.
Michelle Harrison, Morganton, GA
If I want to keep my quilt soft and draping, I use 50 or 60 weight 100% cotton. If I want to make a stiffer quilt, say for a wall quilt, I’ll use a heaver 100% cotton in 30 or 40 weight.
Barbara Porter, Arroyo Grande, CA
For the spool, I prefer 100% Egyptian-grown long-staple cotton. It sews like a dream. In the bobbin, I use either a fine basting thread if the quilt will be heavily quilted or a regular-weight, all-purpose sewing thread.
Andrea Mitchell, Silver Spring, MD
I prefer 40/3ply 100% cotton machine quilting thread with a silk finish because it sews like a dream, doesn’t tangle in the machine, has proven to be durable, and doesn’t cut the fibers of fabric over time.
Pat Smith, Sidney, NY
I prefer Egyptian cotton in a 50 weight for machine quilting. This weight and finish in thread will cause less lint in your sewing machine and take up less room in your seam area, which also allows for more accuracy in the piecing phase. I have used 60 weight in more miniature scale pieces to give even more room in the seam area.
Kim Wiley, Willow Grove, PA
I prefer 60 weight polyester because it gives the quilting a little sheen, while still not being so “thready.” I like to match my thread to the fabric I am sewing on so when I am doing more complicated designs, the thread will not show any mistakes. When I want the quilting to really stand out, I will use a polyester variegated thread or a metallic thread. I will usually stitch over the design about three times to really give it emphasis.
Linda Bridges, Clarksville, TN
I like Libby Lehman’s Bottom Line for bobbins. This is a fine but strong thread that does not pull to the front of the work.
Sally Zimmer, Bark River, MI
My quilting experience began in the late ’90s in Tucson, Arizona. I began with a pair of scissors (also being used for paper and plastic), spools of thread found around the house (one for turkey stitch-up), a very old Montgomery Ward machine (discolored from white to light mustard), all of which I hauled to a quilt class. Since I didn’t have to do much more than straight stitching, I managed rather well and tried not to notice the dowdiness of my machine next to those that glistened around me.
I graduated to a used Pfaff within the first year (still happily in love with it) and never looked back! I learned that more had to evolve with it. What was life like before the rotary cutter? I became conscious of thread and fabric quality in the bargain. The better both, the better the quality and beauty of the quilt! So, I early on jumped from the bargain bins of thread at JoAnn’s to her Sulkys and Gutermann’s in the display cases. Now I regularly shop the specialty quilt shops for top-of-the-line thread.
Jennifer Neighbours, Palmyra, VA
I only use 100% polyester monofilament thread. Nylon will stretch when heated up as it passes through the tension disk, and relax when in the quilt. So it is difficult to get an even tension with nylon. I also use polyester monofilament in my bobbin. But I never use monofilament for baby quilts, as it can be dangerous, if the baby pulls out stitches, and the monofilament gets wrapped around little fingers or in little mouths.
Barbara Porter, Arroyo Grande, CA
Patience and a new size 90/10 needle helps me. If I’m appliquing with monofilament, my bobbin has regular thread.
Debbie Daugherty-Ball, Salisbury, MD
When using monofilament, slow down your quilting speed. Loosen your top and bottom tension, because monofilament is finicky. If you want to use a color thread in the bobbin, use a thin polyester (60 wt or higher bobbin thread). Polyester thread has no fine hairs like cotton and will not catch on the monofilament.
Linda Bridges, Clarksville, TN
If a bobbin is wound too fast with monofilament, the thread can stretch as it is winding and may cause puckering as you stitch.
Working with monofilament can be a challenge. One of the most important things I have learned if I am using it in the bobbin is to wind the bobbin slowly and only fill it half-full. If a bobbin is wound too fast with monofilament, the thread can stretch as it is winding and may cause puckering as you stitch. Winding the bobbin only half-full will prevent “back spin” while sewing.
Linnette Dowdell, Apopka, FL
I use the monofilament thread on top and a regular 50 weight cotton thread in the bobbin. I also keep the monofilament in an airtight baggie when not in use so that it does not become stiff.
Judy Craddock, Babylon, NY
Only use monofilament when making projects that do not require excessive washings, such as a wallhanging, doll quilt or bedrunner. Do not use monofilament thread if the project is going to be washed in hot washers and dryers. It will melt and all the quilting will be destroyed.
Donna Powers, Tellico Plains, TN
Use a thread net on the spool to keep it from unwinding. Superior Thread even includes a net when you buy the spool.
Karen Benke, Medina, OH
It helps to see monofilament stitching if you use natural daylight or a black light while quilting. Make sure you tie off well at the beginning and end to prevent your stitches from unraveling.
Ruth Anglin, Tijeras, NM
I color the end of the thread with a marker to better see it for threading.
Jennifer Padden, Austin, TX
I only use Superior Monopoly monofilament. I love it and keep a spool of it right next to my sewing machine. I use it mostly for stitching in the ditch around appliqué. In the bobbin, use a thread color that matches the color of your background fabric, the fabric under your appliqué. That way, if your tension is not quite perfect and you’re getting porkies (the bobbin thread poking to the top), you won’t notice them as much.
Sue Hurley, Princeton, NJ
I use monofilament for micro background quilting when I do not want the quilting to show, but I just want the textural effect of the quilting.
Barbara Merritt, Brackney, PA
When machine quilting, try using monofilament thread on the topside of the quilt and traditional thread on the underneath side of the quilt. The results will be amazingly similar to hand-quilting, as only small “stitches” of the underneath thread pull to the surface and resemble neat, even handstitching.
Jan Mast, Lancaster, PA
Top 5 Pieces of Advice for Beginners, According to Our Survey
Measure Twice, Cut Once
Take your time and do not rush on your project. Always measure twice before cutting.
Sharon Sutton, Lindsey, OH
Start Small
Make potholders first, lots of potholders, for practice before you use your prettiest or more expensive fabrics.
Barbara Johnson, Dallas, OR
Use The Best Supplies You Can Afford
Use good quality sewing tools including rotary cutter, rulers, a cutting mat, and good sharp scissors. The better your tools, the better your accuracy and the better your finished project.
Linnette Dowdell, Apopka, FL
Mistakes Are Okay
Your quilt does not have to be perfect—nothing is ever perfect. Some of my biggest mistakes have become the unique feature I like best in the finished quilt.
Mary Marlowe, Hedgesville, WV
The ¼” Seam Is Important
Those crazy ¼” seams are hard at first, and no one is perfect the first time. Put a piece of painters tape on your machine by the presser foot where that seam should be. A couple of layers will help even more. Later, if you really like quilting, get a special foot for your machine. It will make it much easier.
Linda Ladrach, Dover, OH
I always have problems with straight line stitching with monofilament. It looks great until I hang the piece, and then there is frequently evidence that the monofilament stretched in stitching and is now relaxing and pulling ever so slightly on the line of stitching. I avoid long lines of monofilament stitching.
Sharon Mountford, Canoga Park, CA
I don’t like monofilament. Every quilt I made in the late ’80s and early ’90s with that product I have had to replace all the quilting.
Kristi Wilson, Irving, TX
D. Metallic Thread
Metallic threads are not as strong as other threads. They are best suited to decorative items that will not be washed or dried very often. Be sure to use a needle specialized for metallic threads as the eye and the scarf of the needle are shaped to prevent fraying. Don’t use your needle threader because you can nick the inside of the needle’s eye, causing a burr that will shred the metallic thread.
Annemarie (Nancy) Poorbaugh, Montgomery, AL
Metallic threads are great for adding a little extra sparkle, but you need to realize they can be a little scratchy in a quilt.
Judy Minard, Sayre, PA
I like metallic thread for free motion thread painting on landscape designs.
I like metallic thread for free motion thread painting on landscape designs. I also like it for couching larger fibers, like yarn, on thread art projects.
Janet Bland, Smyrna, GA
When I use most metallic threads, I use a large-eyed needle. A size 90 topstitching needle is my favorite as there is less friction on the thread as it passes through the eye. Using a longer stitch length and sewing slower also helps to keep the delicate metallic thread from breaking.
I use metallic thread only if there are metallic accents on the fabric, or if I am quilting dupioni silk and want a festive look. I think it looks best as straight-line quilting or outline quilting.
Valerie Turer, Brooklyn, NY
I’ve been told that if you put metallic thread in the freezer, it will not fray as much, but I have not tried it.
Brenda Rice, Nicholasville, KY
E. Perle Cotton
I like the stitching to be a major design/color element in a quilt, so I favor perle cotton because of the range of colors and thicknesses.
Michelle Harrison, Morganton, GA
I enjoy doing “big stitch” embellishments using perle cotton. By that I mean, a running stitch (⅓–¼” in length), a lazy daisy, or big old French knots. I also have done couching over perle cotton. Mark the line you want to embellish and run a line of teensy dots of washable glue along the line. Then apply the perle cotton to the glue and either wait for it to dry or press with a dry iron. Couch over it with a zig-zag that is long and just wide enough to cover. That keeps the focus on the perle cotton.
Andrea Mitchell, Silver Spring, MD
I’m hand quilting a 1930s repro quilt with butterflies hand appliquéd on it. I used black perle cotton to embroider the blanket stitch around each one.
Patricia Grimm, New Windsor, NY
I have tied quilts with perle cotton and have utility quilted with bigger stitches for a more primitive look.
Annemarie (Nancy) Poorbaugh, Montgomery, AL
I use the perle cotton when I serge the edge of a fleece baby blanket to finish the edge. This is instead of binding.
I use the perle cotton when I serge the edge of a fleece baby blanket to finish the edge. This is instead of binding.
Susan Walters, Newark, DE
I really like to appliqué washed, felted wool in blanket stitch, using perle cotton.
Barbara Porter, Arroyo Grande, CA
On my most recent project, a reversible baby quilt, I used perle cotton to hand stitch the binding. I used large running stitches similar to big stitch hand quilting. It added a very sweet touch to the baby quilt.
Marcia Nissley, Ronks, PA
I took a class where we used perle cotton stitching next to the binding which made a nice effect.
Barb Thomas, Wantage, NJ
Perle cotton can be used in the top thread of the machine. The stitching will show great definition and gives a hand-quilted or rustic feel.
Janice Simmons, Fresno, CA
My personal preference is No. 8. When using perle cotton to quilt by machine, I wind a bobbin of No. 8 perle cotton and sew from the reverse side so that the perle cotton is on the front of the quilt.
Linnette Dowdell, Apopka, FL
Don’t stock more thread than you can use in a year.
Don’t stock more thread than you can use in a year. Thread becomes brittle with age and will break, and you’ll have invested in something that you can’t use.
Robbin Golden, Summerville, SC
Be sure that your thread is fresh. If you have thread that was handed down to you from your great aunt, use it for crafting, but not in that quilt you want to last. Test the strength of your thread by pulling a length out and tugging on it to make sure it doesn’t break easily.
Janice Simmons, Fresno, CA
I used to keep my threads on a thread stand, but now I keep them in plastic drawers to keep them away from dust and light.
Karen Martin, Breezy Point, MN
Using Thread Heaven works great when using thread for hand work. It is a solid silicon that lubricates the thread, so it doesn’t get knots or tangles. Beeswax used to be used for this, but it is now suggested that beeswax attracts bugs.
Barbara Porter, Arroyo Grande, CA