2Things that have made me a better piecer

The initial outlay seems like a lot. But it lasts for such a long time that I have trouble believing it's really much more expensive than other brands. The lack of lint in the bobbin case is worth a lot to me!! I've been using Aurifil for years!!!! I have a bottle of Best Press half gone....I hate to get hooked on it...I think it would cost me a lot more than the Aurifil in the long run.

It is a bit expensive, but it lasts a long time. I love it, too. I also found another new one (to me). I had heard Mettler (mercerised cotton) mentioned here on the NG, so I bought a spool when I saw one and have recently tried it. It is also love to work with. I was doing machine quilting, and it didn't stutter. . In message , teleflora writes

You might not believe this, but I have to clean out more lint now than I ever did when all I used was Coats & Clarks. And it's not just Aurifil. When I've used Gutermanns or any of the other better brands of thread, there has been more lint. I take my bobbin area all apart and clean it every time I fill my bobbin.

Maybe it's just my machine. But I never had a problem with plain ole C&C.

Cindy

I've been using that and I love it. Recently I tried Masterpiece, which is also really good, possibly better, the jury is still out on that one! It runs at a very similar price to Aurifil, but I think round here is slightly easier to get hold of.

Cheers Anne

I haven't tried the Best Press -- yet. As for the Aurifil, I don't think it's really that expensive, when you consider how much is on the spool. :)

Yes, that's my story and I'm sticking to it as well.

Cindy

The Aurifil is great here, too. And it does seem to last a very long time. I've almost finished a small bottle of Best Press and am ready to go for the bigger one, but the current one is unscented and I'm curious about the fragrances.

--Heidi

You can buy aurifil 50 wt at

for about half price if you are willing to stitch with some exotic colors. Lately, I've been piecing with eggplant and whale, I think. Doesn't matter much with crib quilts; I guess it might if you're producing an heirloom. Their website is a little strange. You must click a pair of spools and they will give you a few colors in a range; click another pair and see another range and so on. For half price, I'm willing to wander around seeing what's available. Polly

The Lavender is nice. I've got a small bottle of the citrus scent ordered.

Cindy

I confess I have never tried the Mary Ellen stuff but some googling finds that Dryel makes a product that is a starch alternative. That is what the ME stuff alleges to be. I came across a $1.50 off coupon and the stuff is probably available at places like walmart or maybe even the grocery. The online prices look a lot better than the ME stuff. Worth trying I suppose. Taria

Susan Laity Price wrote:

The price is better, but I don't think it's as good. A friend put some in a Best Press bottle and brought it to a workshop. I sprayed one time and told her she got a bad bottle of Best Press. It flaked on my dark fabric. She was convinced we wouldn't be able to tell the difference.

Cindy

I love Aurifil. My first experience with it was using the bobbin specific thread. I can't use the stuff exclusively. My friend left me so much gorgeous thread, the really good stuff, that I can't in good conscience go buy expensive stuff for everything. But when I want something special I use Aurifil. I also love the ME spray, but can't afford it. I've used it in classes and would love to be hooked. When my ship comes in...... LOL

Sunny

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I love the Mary Ellen Best Press!!!! I bought it for all my quilty friends. I think it is well worth the price because it works so well without having to use a lot of it! I like the scent (mines the Caribbean flavor) and I like that it doesn't linger after pressing. I have never had it flake.

I also use Aurafil thread but have recently started using Masterpiece. Both are nice and produce almost no lint.

Good topic!

Don't ingest?

Cindy

Susan Laity Price wrote: The 50 wt. Aurifil is used on almost everything.

I like the Essential Threads from Connecting Threads . It's not Aurifil, but it is much nicer in my machine than any thread (other than Aurifil) that I have used. And at $1.99 for 1200 yards, it is a lot less expensive than $8.95 for 1422 yards of Aurifil (at redrockthreads.com)

Julia in MN