Cotton or Polyester Thread for Piecing?

[Hannelore N.]

one thing to note is that different irons have dramatically different top temps. I recently melted all the threads in the piece I was working on when I bought a new iron.
When I looked at the specs of the iron the new one has almost double the wattage of the old one.

Ruth

[Anne B.]

I was once told that the polyester tears quilts over a period of time when washed, and if you sew to tiny of stitches by machine the same will happen over a period of time.
I've also heard this was a myth on polyester thread because back in the day cotton thread was the only resource to be used.

Katzzz, it's not a myth. It happened to me.

The first quilt I made (in the early 1990s) was a lap quilt that I put through the washer and dryer a lot. (I was a newbie--what did I know about washing quilts?) After about ten years the polyester thread sawed through many of the seams, and the patches fell off.

Now I use Aurifil 50-weight thread for piecing. It's nice and strong, and leaves very little lint in my sewing machine.

If I have to replace something in a few years, I'd sooner it was the thread than the fabric! It's never happened to me, though, since I switched from poly to cotton.

Anne in Vancouver, Canada

[Anne B.]

I use polyester thread all the time when I am embellishing and quilting, but I stick with long, staple Egyptian cotton when I piece because it leaves a lot less junk in my machine. Rembember that once you sew your seam, press the seam you just sewed. It seems to set the thread just right. Then you can open it up and press to the "dark side". I only use 2 colors when I piece---light grey and dark grey. The only exception is if I am sewing on all white fabrics. It is amazing how just those two colors go with anything! If I am piecing light materials I use the light grey and with dark materials I use the dark grey. You never, ever see the difference in the colors you are piecing once it is pressed. The best part is that I don't have to keep changing the thread every time I use a new fabric color. Try it. You will be amazed. (By the way, I am called The Thread Lady because of my expertise in that area.) I have at least 10 boxes of thread, but only one of those boxes is cotton. Remember to keep your cotton thread out of the light or it will get old and brittle. Never store your thread on those thread racks. Put them in closed cases and keep them away from the light.

[Anne B.]

I recently started using Superior's Masterpiece thread for piecing and it is my favorite EVER. No lint and fuzz in the machine, and it's so fine that I can load a lot of thread on a bobbin--less time bobbin-winding.

[Lorna B.]

I understand the light grey and dark grey. Which do you use when you are piecing a white fabric with a dark fabric?

[Diane O.]

I used to buy thread to match the fabric when I first started quilting. But I always had thread left over, and never used it, because I usually didn't make another quilt in that color again.

Now I use light grey, dark grey and black... and I will probably phase out the black when I run out of black thread. I use the black on fabric that has a black background, but have used the dark grey and still couldn't see my stitches, when I was too lazy to change the thread. I use the Superior Masterpiece thread for all my piecing.

Diane in Colorado Springs

[Diane O.]

Vonna, I use Aurifil also, I also use it for FMQ.

Zimmy in Indiana