Tuesday, April 17, 2012

thread review - connecting threads

Quilters use a lot of thread.  And lots of it ends up all over ourselves, our homes, our families.  That's for another post, for now, lets just talk thread.  We all have our favorites, right?  I know I do.  And it's something I decided on completely un-scientifically.  So, I figured why not make a still not scientific but somewhat more sane approach to analyzing the threads out there.  Maybe I'll find a new favorite, maybe I won't.  I will clog my vacuum's rotary head in the process, that's a promise.

First up is Connecting Threads' Essential Cotton Thread in Silver.  It's a 50/3 weight thread that retails for $2.49 US per 1200 yard spool.


Lint can make or break a thread for me.  Does anyone like to clean lint out of their sewing machines?  I secretly love pulling a fresh sheet of lint out of the lint catcher in the dryer, my sewing machine not so much.
I received this thread in a swap from Heather at Crafting... and she'd warned me that for her machine it was, well, a lint machine.  So I was pleasantly surprised to find that there was very little lint produced with mine.  There was so little that I'd actually consider going 2 or 3 bobbins before cleaning - not something I can always get away with. 


This is a fairly thick thread for a 50 weight so the seams did not lie as flat as I would prefer, but were still acceptably flat.


I managed to sew 6 and a bit On a Whim blocks using one bobbin of Connecting Threads Essential Cotton Thread, equaling approximately 1273" of sewing.

So to summarize:

Price: $2.49 / 1200 yd spool or $0.002 per yard.  A+ on price!
Lint: not much at all.  A on lint
The flat factor:  Acceptable.  C+

Overall?  B+





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15 comments:

  1. DeborahApril 17, 2012 at 4:26 PM

    I'm happy to see your review. I use this thread along with a few others but this is my basic " go to" thread. I agree completely with your analysis!

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  2. JenelleApril 17, 2012 at 5:47 PM

    This is such as great idea to review thread in this way Chelsea (love your grading system!). I haven't used Connecting Threads thread yet, but I am planning on doing some of my own testing on some Aurifil and Superior threads that I recently purchased against the Guttermann thread I typically use (because lets face it, I started using Guttermann because I could buy a big spool at Joanns for hardly anything!). ;)

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  3. UnknownApril 17, 2012 at 6:27 PM

    I like this thread quite a bit as well. The price is so hard to pass up! I think it is great for piecing, but hit or miss for fmq. I also LOVE the color selection! :)

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  4. Mrs Flying Blind...April 18, 2012 at 12:23 AM

    Liking your methods - but don't think we have that thread here.

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  5. Katy CameronApril 18, 2012 at 1:08 AM

    Good idea on the review, but like Hadley, we don't have that one here. Looking forward to seeing what's next...

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  6. Ann Marie @ 16 Muddy FeetApril 18, 2012 at 2:43 AM

    I always wondered how that thread was seeing it was so cheap in the catalog. Now I know I can give it a try.

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  7. CarolinaApril 18, 2012 at 4:19 AM

    I really like your grading scale. Will you continue reviewing different brands of thread?

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  8. KatieApril 18, 2012 at 2:57 PM

    I also found that this thread doesn't produce a lot of lint. I did some FMQ with it and it kept breaking, so that was the one downside I have found. I do like the selection they carry and will consider buying more to use for non-quilting sewing.

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  9. Rachel at Stitched in ColorApril 19, 2012 at 12:44 PM

    This is one I want to try. I'm glad you're doing this review!

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  10. Heather D.April 21, 2012 at 9:35 PM

    Chelsea, I like this review! To be fair, since I posted about it and used the thread a bit more, I realized it maybe didn't make quite as much lint as I originally thought. When I had balls and balls of fluff in my machine it was after 5 bobbins of FMQ so that could explain that problem!!

    However, I just found the thread a bit thick for my liking. It didn't seem to flow smoothly through my machine, and in the end I think that's my biggest complaint. I'm waiting for an order of some aurifil that I'm excited to try as well, it is apparently thinner than Gutermann (which I usually use) so will most certainly be thinner than the Connecting Threads.

    I'm envious of those people that it works well for because the price just can't be beat!!

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  11. bulabeanApril 26, 2012 at 7:14 PM

    Great review! I've used this thread with no problems. I really like the colors and I do like the thickness for quilting, topstitching, etc. I honestly can't say I noticed any difference in fluff accumulation between Aurifil and Connecting Threads. Curious what machine you are using it in as I have heard some people say it works fine in one "brand" and not others. I've used it in both Janome and Juki.

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  12. Shanna of Fiber of All SortsMay 2, 2012 at 3:18 PM

    Oh . . please keep doing these sweetie!

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  13. Wonky GirlMay 21, 2014 at 11:25 PM

    Happy to find your review after searching for info on this thread. CT has a sale going on until the 16th of June, $1.95 per spool. I think I'll try the thread now :-).

    ReplyDelete
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  15. SharonMarch 29, 2018 at 2:08 PM

    Thanks for your review on Connecting Threads thread. I would like to give it a try.

    ReplyDelete

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