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Resources => Your Favourite Suppliers => Topic started by: jk1066 on March 12, 2018, 16:24:26 PM

Title: buying sewing thread
Post by: jk1066 on March 12, 2018, 16:24:26 PM
Where do you suggest for buying sewing thread in the uk? I can buy  small reels in local shops but would like to buy larger spools online if possible. Any recommendations for good quality thread for domestic sewing machine at a good price ?
many thanks
Title: Re: buying sewing thread
Post by: Kad on March 12, 2018, 16:39:03 PM
I buy most of my sewing thread, both 100% cotton and ' polycore - polyester wrapped in cotton' from empressmill.co.uk.
I buy my core colours on a 7500 m cone which works out to be very economical. They also have bobbinfil, for machine embroidery and proper tacking thread.
Title: Re: buying sewing thread
Post by: Acorn on March 12, 2018, 16:40:00 PM
I use Jaycotts (https://jaycotts.co.uk) and Barnyarns (https://www.barnyarns.co.uk) for machine embroidery threads. 

They are best I've found in terms of price, selection and speed of delivery for machine embroidery threads, although I'm not entirely sure whether they're also the best for sewing thread because I got a massive supply of decent quality reels with my sewing machine - they're probably going to outlast me! 
Title: Re: buying sewing thread
Post by: Ellabella on March 12, 2018, 17:00:10 PM
There was a thread recently that recommended Guttermans Mara as the industry equivalent of Sew All and the prices were excellent.

Sorry I'm on my tablet at the moment so can't do a link but it was only in the last week.
Title: Re: buying sewing thread
Post by: Efemera on March 12, 2018, 17:40:09 PM
I bought a job lot of cones from a factory 30 years ago... I sold most and give lots away, I’m still using what’s left...I only wish I’d kept the woolly nylon to use with the coverstitch machine.
Title: Re: buying sewing thread
Post by: arrow on March 12, 2018, 17:48:56 PM
I can't do any search right now, but there is a recent post on Gütermann threads, and how to find the basic sew-all on cones. It's under a different name. It's not the lowest price, but the best polyester thread I have found. It's a least a good option.
Title: Re: buying sewing thread
Post by: Lowena on March 12, 2018, 19:24:13 PM
My machine doesn't like Guttermans :(
Title: Re: buying sewing thread
Post by: Bobbinalong on March 13, 2018, 09:41:29 AM
 I think William Gee have the Gutterman on large cones that's been mentioned above. I was on their website last night and they appear to have loads of colours, if I remember rightly on 10,000 metre cones. Their carriage however is a flat £6.95 which I think is a bit pricey if you're only getting a few bits. I bought some calico for toiles that wasn't quite the bargain it first appeared to be once VAT and postage were added but it was still comparable to other places' initially higher prices per metre when it was all added up. I've never bought calico before but I'm determined to nail the fit on slim fit trousers and old sheets just aren't working very well.
Title: Re: buying sewing thread
Post by: StitchinTime on March 13, 2018, 09:53:25 AM
This is the link to the previous post about Gutermann Mara thread:
https://thesewingplace.org.uk/index.php/topic,3646.0.html
Title: Re: buying sewing thread
Post by: BrendaP on March 13, 2018, 10:07:39 AM
Guetermann Mara 100 is the same as their SewAll.  Mara 30 = Top Stitch and Mara 70 = Extra Strong.  Mara 120 and Mara 150 are finer than SewAll, better suited to overlocking or very fine fabrics.
http://www.williamgee.co.uk/product-category/sewing-threads/gutermann-sewing-threads/page/2/ (http://www.williamgee.co.uk/product-category/sewing-threads/gutermann-sewing-threads/page/2/)

Other good brands are Superior Threads, Madeira, Mettler, DMC and Presencia.

A lot of people say they use Coats Moon without problem, but it is thicker than Guetermann SewAll which a lot of us take as the 'standard' for ordinary sewing machine use, and also when you look closely at Moon it is hairy and that's not good.

@Lowena  when you say your machine doesn't like Guetermann, did you use SewAll polyester or Guetermann cotton 50?   If your machine is fine-tuned for cotton thread and then you switch to polyester (any brand) you might need to tweek the tenson settings.  Before the advent of stretchy fabrics and thus the need for the slightly stretchy polyester threads everyone used cotton (usually Coats Sylko) in their machines and they probably had fewer tension problems than we do now with the plethora of thread which is around.
Title: Re: buying sewing thread
Post by: Morgan on March 13, 2018, 10:36:53 AM


For sewing thread, overlocking thread, woolly nylon/polybulk https://www.novatrimmings.co.uk/product-category/sewing-thread/ (https://www.novatrimmings.co.uk/product-category/sewing-thread/)

Also some zips https://www.novatrimmings.co.uk/product-category/zips/ (https://www.novatrimmings.co.uk/product-category/zips/)


other stuff

Title: Re: buying sewing thread
Post by: Gernella on March 13, 2018, 11:38:58 AM
I see they sell Superstitch threads, I've seen these before on another site but never seen anyone mention them as being a recommended thread.  Mind you the amount of thread I have now I think I'm fixed up for the next 10 years
Title: Re: buying sewing thread
Post by: jk1066 on March 13, 2018, 14:13:33 PM
Thank you for all the recommendations and places to look at for buying thread. I had a quick look and of course it's the postage costs that make all the difference. I shall try and put together a batch so I don't have to pay for postage. The other problem is matching colours. I found a guttman colour 299 that is exactly what I want but how to translate that into another brand. Is there any conversion methods for colours? so I can use another make.
At the moment I'm looking at the empress site but it's tricky with the colour options.
Title: Re: buying sewing thread
Post by: Lowena on March 13, 2018, 18:48:17 PM
Cotton @BrendaP
Title: Re: buying sewing thread
Post by: Efemera on March 13, 2018, 19:24:14 PM
It just confirms my suspicions....I’m a sewing slut.. I just use any old thing, never consider the brand or content. Nothing has ever fallen apart in the last 50years.
Title: Re: buying sewing thread
Post by: sewingj on March 13, 2018, 19:36:25 PM
My first sewing machine was a Singer in 1975 which broke everything except Molnlycke thread which came on dinky little spools.  I now used Guterman Sew All because that is all I can get locally.  I do like to be able to see the colour so it is the only thing that I don`t buy online (except for black and white of course)
Title: Re: buying sewing thread
Post by: sewmuchmore on March 14, 2018, 10:00:52 AM
I use Madeira for general sewing but only because In the recent past I won a treasure chest and then and then a classic 30 box so enough thread to last a lifetime. Funnily enough my embroidery machine doesn't like Madeira so use Brother or Isacord and Poly from Tysew for the overlocker £5 for 4 reels (https://www.tysew.co.uk/haberdashery/threads?page=8)
Title: Re: buying sewing thread
Post by: Acorn on March 14, 2018, 10:08:20 AM
My main sewing machine will sew with pretty much anything, but my embroidery/sewing machine is much fussier.  It doesn't like Sim threads, which seem to be reasonable quality to me.  Fortunately it does like Gutermann, which is all that I can get locally.  It's a bit less keen on Gutermann cotton, which is annoying because I really like embroidery in cotton rather than rayon.  There don't seem to be any settings to change to do with cotton vs rayon.
Title: Re: buying sewing thread
Post by: BrendaP on March 14, 2018, 10:41:18 AM
If you want cotton embroidery thread Madeira Cotona is a good brand - and Tanne is/was the same thread just on bigger spools.

For machine embroidery the imprtant thing is usually that it's a 2 ply thread as that allows the thread to spread out over the surface of teh fabric better.  For sewing seams a 3 ply thread (of equivalent thickness) is stronger.