Applique thread

In a couple weeks I'll be taking a class from Elizabeth Carlson. She will be teaching us how to make an Irish Rose quilt with some hand appliqué. In the list of supplies needed she mentions "thread to match appliqué fabrics". There are three colors - dark green, red and gold. What kind of thread should I get? I'm not sure if this is something that I'll get interested in, or ever try again. Do you suggest silk, rayon, or whatever I have on hand? I'd appreciate your thoughts on this...thanks.

Reply to
Alice
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I'd suggest buying one spool of a neutral color silk thread; I use tan, very fine silk thread for all of my hand applique, regardless of the color. Or buy a nice cotton such as Aurifil in the colors to match the applique. Then you can always use it for piecing later.

Julia > In a couple weeks I'll be taking a class from Elizabeth Carlson. She will

Reply to
Julia in MN

You won't get a really representative result, if you don't use matching thread, Alice - that's the only snag. I think silk is wonderful; but there is no point in investing in that, if you don't know you will ever use it again. If you have thread (as fine as you have) in the three colours, use them. I have also used embroidery floss to good effect (I had more colours in that at the time). I split it down to a single thread. . In message , Alice writes

Reply to
Patti

I agree with Julia and Pat's advice- either a fine neutral silk or a thread to match each fabric. I have successfully used matching Coats & Clark thread or cotton thread. With cotton be sure you get a 50 to 60 wt.- or even finer. You don't want to use a heavy cotton thread unless it's for buttonhole appliqué or decorative appliqué stitching. And please don't use rayon. While it's beautiful, it's not strong enough for appliqué or piecing. But it is amazing for machine quilting.

Have fun!

Leslie & The Furbabies in MO.

Reply to
Leslie & The Furbabies in MO.

For hand applique -- I heartily recommend silk thread matching the color of your applique pieces.

A little pricey -- but it sews like a hot knife through butter.

Reply to
Kate G.

I like silk. And I knot the needle with the thread so it doesn't keep slipping off. I use a double knot and have never had any trouble with the knot going through the fabric.

Silk thread just melts into the fabric and it is practically invisible. I use white, cream or gray for every fabric color.

Cindy

Reply to
teleflora

Thank you so much for all the great replies. Tomorrow I'll check out a couple fabric stores, and see what I can come up with!

Reply to
Alice

I would recommend a fine cotton thread. The better quality the better. Either a 50 or 60 weight would work well. (Such as Presencia, Aurifil, or Superior Threads Masterpiece. All are nice quality, tightly twisted, fine threads that you can also use on the machine to piece/quilt with. )

Good luck, and have fun, Pati, > In a couple weeks I'll be taking a class from Elizabeth Carlson. She will

Reply to
Pati C.

On Mon, 7 Apr 2008 12:10:08 -0500, Alice wrote (in article ):

Silk is wonderful for applique, but I've had good results with fine cotton thread and even plain 'ole Dual Duty. If you're not sure you'll like applique I think you could use whatever you have on hand.

Reply to
Maureen Wozniak

Alice: Cool! I think I'll be at the same event! I'm taking classes from Marsha McCloskey and Norma Campbell. Email me off line and we can compare notes!! Meantime, go to

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for more information, and the link to email her. HTH.

Reply to
Pat in Virginia

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