Quilting Thread Stash/Thread Review

I spent last weekend preparing quilts for quilting.  In addition to finishing UFO's, I'm trying to prevent any new quilt tops I make from becoming UFO's waiting for the quilting and binding.  Over the last couple of years I've really built up my quilting thread stash so when I have a batch of quilt tops ready for quilting I break out my thread stash and start auditioning.  While I had everything out for this last batch, I thought it would be fun to share my thread stash with you.

First up is my Essentials thread stash, with a few others thrown in this box.  My entire Essentials thread collection was my Christmas gift from my sister last year.  The colors are just yummy and the threads I've used so far have been wonderful.  You can check them out here.  They run sales on their thread, so keep an eye out.  My sister picked up all of the sets I requested at 30% off last November and that sale ran through January I believe.  Also in this box are a few Valdani threads that I haven't used yet, overflow of my piecing thread that didn't fit in it's assigned container, and five spools of YLI thread that didn't fit in their box.

Next up is my King Tut thread stash.  With the exception of 8 spools that I purchased in February during a 30% off sale and a couple of random spools purchased separately, the rest of this thread was purchased for either 50 or 70% off during a quilt shop closing in late 2008.  At those prices it was definitely worth building up a stash.  The colors are gorgeous and this thread quilts up great.  If you want to check out this thread, go here.

Next up we have my Sulky rayon, Gutermann cotton, and DMC embroidery threads.  These were the first machine quilting threads I bought before I really knew what I was going to do with them.  I bought them during great sales at Joann's and thought it would be great to have a lot of colors.  I have used some of the rayons for machine quilting and they are wonderful.  The DMC embroidery thread did well for quilting as well, although I probably wouldn't buy it again for that purpose as it's pretty thin, but it works well for small quilts that won't get a lot of abuse.  I'm currently using the rayons and the Gutermann for machine applique and they are working great for that purpose as well.

The next picture shows my Robinson Anton 50 wt Cotton collection.  When I bought my first Janome MC6600 the dealer threw in this box of thread.  It's a nice thin 50 wt cotton thread.  I used this thread for the first time in December and it quilted beautifully.  Of course, every thread I've tried in my machine has worked beautifully.  That's one of the things I absolutely love about my machine.  It pieces and quilts with any thread I want to use and I never have tension problems.  Also in this drawer is a large spool of Coats & Clark variegated that I bought at Joann's for a specific quilt.  I had no trouble with that thread either and I used it on both the top and in the bobbin. 

This next box contains my YLI thread stash, all variegated colors.  This is a 40 wt machine quilting thread.  The colors are YUMMY and it quilts up just great.  It's a bit thicker than the King Tut, but it's not bulky at all.  With the exception of the 10 spools I just got on sale, and a few others I purchased separately, most of these threads were again a gift from my sister for Christmas a couple of years ago.  A good source for these threads is Red Rock Threads.  I've ordered from them and my sister also got my YLI gift threads from them.  The prices are good and their service is great, although I noticed when pulling the link that the price of these threads has gone from $4.99 to $5.75.  Hmmm, I wonder why.  Their King Tut price is still the same, so the manufacturer must have raised prices for the YLI.  Anyway, they have a great thread selection overall and reasonable shipping costs.  Many of the random threads that I have, like the Valdani and Presencia, were ordered from them so I could try out a number of different threads without having to order from multiple places.

This last container is what I originally bought to store my thread stash.  Clearly I have outgrown it LOL.  This container now holds my hand quilting thread, my invisible thread, my Coats & Clark variegated collection from Joann's, which quilts very nicely I might add and is very reasonably priced, as well as other random threads.

And finally, I wanted to show you the containers I purchased last December after receiving all of those Essentials threads and having no where to store them.  I found these cardboard boxes at Hobby Lobby for 50% off during the Christmas season.  They are perfect for storing my threads and they are decorative too.  I only see the sides when they are stored, so I don't care that they have Christmas tops.  Actually, I wouldn't care anyway :-).  One is a bit shallower than the other and was just the right depth for the YLI collection.  The taller one is just the right depth for the Essentials and Coats & Clark piecing thread spools which are taller.  They have lids that go all the way down the sides so they are pretty sturdy.  If you go back to the first picture in my post you can see one of the lids in the background laying on it's side.

 

So that's the tour of my thread stash. Hope you enjoyed it and maybe found some new threads to try in your quilting.  Oh, and keep an eye out for some finishes soon.  I have been a busy little beaver in my sewing room and should have something to show for it soon.