A Superior Education

I sat myself down yesterday and watched Thread Therapy with Dr. Bob.  Subtitled “Eliminate your Frustrations with Thread, Needles, Tension,” it went a long way to do just that during its less than two hour running time.
I have long appreciated Superior Threads and their accurate but humorous advice. I’ve poked around their website, read their blogs, and received their emails. But I learned so much more from this little video.
Here is one teaser from just the first few minutes.
I, like many other quilters, have been seduced by the sparkly metallic threads on a narrow cone at the fabric store.  But then when sewing with them, they break.
Bob demonstrated a simple test for metallic thread.
Pull a foot or two off the spool.  If the thread is curly and twisted as it hangs, it will twist along the thread path and break when it goes through the tension disks.
If it hangs straight, it will sew without twisting.
Some of the problem lies in the manufacturing — the way the metallic foil is wrapped around the center thread. Some of the problem lies with the diameter of the core. Some are just a half inch or so, the thread takes on “memory” of that tight wind.
Superior’s metallic threads are wound on a larger diameter spool, and don’t twist.
I feel like I’ve learned a lot over the years about thread, tension and needles.  But so many of the gaps in my knowledge were filled in by sitting down and watching this video.
The DVD is still available and free of charge.  Here is the link:
http://www.superiorthreads.com/shop/product/DVD-Thread-Seminar/
There is much to be gained from this wonderful company. In the future I’ll let you know what you CAN do with those pesky metallic threads in your stash.