Guide to cotton or polyester or silk thread? And why my cotton breaks! Post 590

Mercerised thread spool. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.

Why Does Thread Break?

 I used to wonder why my thread kept breaking. I asked a lady in a sewing materials shop. She said that the more expensive cottons are waxed so that the fine threads bind together. 

I had previously thought that the thread on the wooden spools was more expensive because of the cost of the spool. Now I realise that threads are not all the same quality. 

Thread Monthly

I just found a really handy guide to different types of thread. From Threadsmonthly.

Beeswax - Threading Needles

They suggested that if the end of your thread is fraying, so that you cannot thread a needle, you run the end of the thread through beeswax. That is really handy. 

I had a pot of beeswax and did not know why I had it or what I was supposed to do with it.

If you cannot get the fraying end of your thread through the small head of a small needle, you can switch to a smaller needle, but that might make large holes in a delicate fabric such as silk. So use beeswax to coat the end of your thread and bind it together. 

Sewing and Knotting

I also discovered that beeswax is used to bind together the thread. this prevents strings and lumps hanging off cheaper thread from catching as you sew and breaking when you try to pull it through the fabric. 

I had that tiny pot of beeswax with my sewing machine bits and bobs for months and wondered what it was for. Now I know.

Mercerised and Shrinkage

I looked at the various wooden spools and labels. Mercerised thread? What is that? I have had this for years but never noticed the label. Thre thread has been treated, heated, before it reaches you and your garment and your washing machine, so it does not later shrink in the wash.  If your thread shrinks more than the surrounding threads, it will pucker. Now you know.

Useful Websites

https://threadsmonthly.com/sewing-thread-types-uses/

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