A difference of thread weights

It isn’t something I really thought that much about until I started hand stitching the charm basket handles.

I mean, I know thread weights affect how projects look when they are used as surface embellishment, as in cross stitch, needlework, embroidery, even quilting. But I hadn’t really considered that a 50wt thread vs. an 80wt thread would make such a difference in appliqué. Which is funny, because I definitely wouldn’t use a 40wt thread – just because of how bulky it would feel – for blind stitching.

So I stitched this second version of the pinkish red basket handle with a 50wt polyster thread. And it was a little bit bulkier than the Aurifil 50wt I usually use for English paper piecing. It won’t be noticeable from a distance, but I can feel it and see it when I’m up close on it. It probably doesn’t help that I used a darker red than I probably should have. I never can remember if I should go a shade darker or lighter…

I had been thinking about a video that I watched where Tula Pink shows off her two “A Place for Everything” bags – one for English paper piecing and one for appliqué. She mentioned that she now uses 80wt Aurifil for her hand appliqué, and it looks so much nicer than when she started with 50wt.

I was intrigued. And I thought well, I should try out this 80wt Aurifil. After all, I really like the 50wt. And I did. And it’s amazing.

I should probably do the comparison again with like colors, but I can already tell that I love the weight of this thread so much better for this purpose.

So I made an, ahem, investment.

This collection of 80wt Aurifil should give me enough variety to make it through all of my basket handles. And it’s like having a new box of crayons!

The top row is from the Tilda special edition collection Chic Escape. I splurged on a charm pack when I recently dropped off one of my machines for service. I saw the little pack of 5 inch squares and thought that some of them would be a nice addition for my basket collection.