Thread, Thread again.

Sewing machine owners have a hidden motto: "If at first you don't succeed, Thread, Thread Again."  It's the Control-ALT-Delete of the sewing world.  Anytime my serger acts up, I cut the threads and start over, same thing with my sewing machine.  Most issues are about thread.  Is the tension correct?  Is it running through the machine correctly?  Is the thread breaking?   Is the bobbin wound correctly? It seems so simple.  How can such a simple issue cause so many problems?  Is it the thread or is it that malfunction between the peddle and the chair? 
  
There are a lot of brands of thread out there.  When I worked out House of Fabrics, I did my best to steer customers away from bin thread, and over to a sturdier brand.  I'm not sure why 5/$1 thread exists, as the only outcome I've seen from this product is frustration over snapping thread and unraveled seams.  I boasted about Coats and Clarks thread, which was the only brand I'd ever tried.   It was the only brand my mother would buy.  It isn't a bad thread, but I soon fell in love with the colors that Gutermann had to offer.  It wasn't until I had a serger that my love affair with Gutermann came to an end.  Anyone who has had thread snap in a serger knows the frustration of threading and re threading, only to have the thread snap again.  I returned the cone thread to the big box store I bought it at, and they were unhappy that I did so.  I pulled on the thread and showed them how easily it snapped, and they gave me my money back.  It could have been old thread, or it could have just been inferior thread.  Regardless, it was a waste of my time.  I found myself back at the shop where I bought my serger, asking for opinions and advice on threads.  Names like Mettler, Madiera and Maxi-lock topped the list for recommendations.  I started asking everyone I knew that had ever sewed what kind of thread they used, and I came up with two groups of answers:  "Mettler, Madiera, and Maxi-lock" and "Does it matter?" 

I felt like I was in the same loop I was when researching sewing machines.  Did it really make sense to spend more on something?  There were two sides of the sewing machine debate, with lines drawn firmly in the sand.  There was the group of elite sewers/quilters who stood proudly by their Berninas, Janomes, PFaffs, and Babylocks, and defended their machines like the Hatfields and McCoys.  Then there was the group that stood by their $300 machines that they replaced every few years.  All of the debates left me thinking, "Do I really get what I pay for?"  The sewing machine debate was ended by my husband, who reminded me that I never swore when I was running the Bernina Serger, but my Kenmore machines had always left me in a bad mood.  I'm fortunate to have a husband who understands that these machines are my tools.  I still wasn't so sure if investing more in a machine would ever pay off, and I felt the same about thread.
At some point during the last school year, I had been working on a project for my son's preschool.  The Queen was coming for tea, and the teacher had wanted tabbards for the boys to wear.  I didn't have time to make my way to my usual thread store, so I stopped at a higher-end fabric store and picked up four spools of Mettler thread.  Let me stop here and say serger thread is typically two strands of thread running together and should NEVER be used in your regular machine.  That being said, I'm not sure there is any harm in running 3-ply or 4-Ply thread through your serger.  Anyhow, I stitched about a dozen flannel tabbards up in no time.  The ease of sewing with the Mettler was amazing.  I didn't have to re thread ONCE.  I practically skipped through the house celebrating.  I hesitated to throw away all of my cone thread, but I knew it was the best thing.  I was wasting my time making things with thread that might break.

I know, I know, I'm sounding like a thread snob.  Pull out different brands of thread and look at the strands.  I mean really look at them.  There are blobs of fibers on cheaper threads, and smooth grain lines on more expensive threads.  I thought about all of the hours I put into my projects.  It wasn't just the sewing part, but selecting the fabrics, pre-washing and ironing, cutting the fabrics out, and THEN sewing the project.  All of that time and effort goes into a project, why not select the best materials?    The thread is what holds the project together, why skimp there?  If I hadn't honestly noticed a difference, I would just buy whatever was on sale and go about my business.  Now I find myself wondering how many hours I lost dealing with broken thread.   How much of that blobby thread had shed off inside my machine?  Wouldn't that mean more cleanings and maintenance for my machines?  How much time did I spend dealing with thread issues?  How much frustration did it cause?  My time, my sanity and my machines were worth a LOT more than the extra buck I would put into the higher quality thread, so why risk it?  Sometimes we forget that our sewing machines are MACHINES.  They need maintenance, and the products we put into them be problematic.  Avoid the trouble before you even start your project, and purchase quality materials - from the fabric to the thread.  It's worth it!