Thread Therapy

The Kentuckiana Longarm Group met yesterday to talk about thread.  We enjoyed watching the Thread Therapy CD with Bob Purcell, president of Superior Threads, giving one of his thread lectures.  If you ever have a chance to see him in person, it's worth it as he is quite entertaining (just groan at his jokes) and has all sorts of tidbits about thread...how it's made, terminology used in packaging and what it means to you, and how to pair it with the correct needle.  In the meantime, check out Superior's web site as there is a ton of useful information there about threads.

Marcy hosted the meeting and demonstrated the way to use the Towa Tension gauge for bobbin tension measurements.  She also had one of the new Superior Threads Top Thread Tension gauges.  Used in conjunction with Superior's chart of correct tension measurements, it takes all of the mystery out of whether or not your tension is correct.

One of the helpful tips from the video was that metallic thread, when pulled off the spool, shouldn't twist up like a phone cord.  If it does, Bob's advice is to throw the spool away or to use it in the bobbin only.  Using it in the top will cause unneeded headaches.  The other tip I found helpful was that Topstitch needles and Metallic needles are essentially equivalent.  They have a double sized eye to allow the thread more room so threads fray less.  He maintains that a majority of teachers and educators now use Topstitch needles almost exclusively.

After talking about different threads and tension issues, we went up to Marcy's studio.  What a wonderful space she has!

Marcy, at right, talking with others about the number of thread guides and the tension adjustments on her HQ Avante.

While they were talking about thread tension adjustments, I took myself on a tour of her sewing studio.  I was captivated by the antiques she has and the way she's using them! 

This lovely bookcase is in her sewing studio - mixing a love of antiques and fabrics.  There are some books on the upper right shelf, too.



This is the other bookshelf full of fabrics.

I really liked this cutting table - just two rolling tables pushed together.  Plenty of storage space underneath.  She's got a large cutting mat across the tops of the tables.

Here's Barbara with the one Show and Tell quilt.  She did a beautiful job quilting it and gave me some ideas for how to quilt sashing and triangle spaces.

 It was an interesting afternoon and a gorgeous day for a drive through the countryside.  Good times, good friends, and good snacks!

Cheers!
Margaret