DecoBob ThreadTalk on Off the Wall Friday

 Let me start this by saying I am in no way affiliated with Wonderfil.  In fact, as you might have noticed, I never monetized my blog 'cause I really feel like we have enough ads in our lives and I'm not adding to the clutter.

 Wonderfil is a thread manufacturer in Alberta, Canada.  I came across their thread by mistake back in 2020 when I saw somewhere (I think it was on the AQS site) that they were giving away free samples of Wonderfil thread.  Because all the national quilt shows had been canceled that year,  they had all these thread sample boxes left.  Let me tell ya, they were very smart to send me one. 

The next thing ya know I've totally fallen in love with their threads, especially DecoBob.  Over the next two years, they ended up sending me a lot of samples to try out which were great.  You can see reviews on them Here and Here.  Testing them out like that was so useful because it really gave me a good idea of how the different threads could be used.  

Today, I fed my inner thread geek even more by taking off a couple of hours from work to join a live ThreadTalk about DecoBob given by Calista and Stephanie Ngai (whose family founded the company).  It was so fun to watch the two women talk so enthusiastically about their product.  Since I sell clothes for a living I can really tell when people are authentic and these two were!  Plus it was fun knowing that 175 other people world wide were along with me.  

What did I learn?

• DecoBob is very versatile.  You can use it in your bobbin of course.  Also,  when you do applique (machine & hand), machine piecing, machine quilting (long arm and domestic), in your serger (especially on filmy fabrics), machine embroidery, paper piecing (English and regular) and thread painting.
• What it is not recommended for is garment construction sewing and hand piecing.  
• It is a cottonized polyester thread.  Cottonized means that the polyester has gone through a manufacturing process so that it will mimic the properties of cotton.  It has a matte finish, resists shrinking and is heat resistant.
• Although dependent on fabric and machine, a good needle to use with DecoBob is a Microtex 80/12.  In free-motion quilting, a top stitch 90/12 or  90/14 is recommended.
• Because DecoBob is an 80 wt thread (very fine) when you piece with it the seams will lie flatter than they would if you are using a 50 wt cotton thread.  
• DecoBob now comes in 60 colors which is up from 36.  Soon all colors will be available in all three size spools.
• Bobbin thread makes up 30% of your actual machine stitch.
• A smaller stitch length will result in more precise piecing, especially in curve piecing

They also gave a good speal on why we should all be using pre-wound bobbins.  That has me wondering if it's actually true or not.  They showed several samples with work done by regular wound bobbins and prewound.  Also how the two look side by side.   It's made me curious enough to give some a try that's for sure.  I think for my work where it would make a difference is when I'm free motion quilting and when I'm using monofilament thread.

My takeaway?  I think I'll try more machine piecing with decoBob.  I definitely am making sure all my bobbins are wound with decoBob (I think I still have a few in there with 50 wt aurifil and I can tell the difference when I'm sewing). And yes, I'm adding some of the new colors to my Christmas list.

If you're a thread geek like me (and you know you are!),  I highly suggest you take a look at the threaducation links on the Wonderfil website.  If you go to the bottom of the webpage you will see the interesting links.  If you want to learn more about DecoBob than really necessary, the talk was recorded and will posted to their YouTube channel.   

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Back to the Pinwheels on Off the Wall Friday

 

So does everyone have that one big project that just seems to go on and on with no real end in sight?  My English paper pieced pinwheels is that project.  It's been going on for ...oh I don't know... 13 years now??  I know I started it in a weak moment.  I had finished the 4,200-piece tumbling blocks quilt and thought "Gee I haven't EPP in a while".  What happened if I did an improv EPP using just one shape but played with value.  At that point I never saw an art quilt improvisationally English paper pieced.  13 years later, I now know why.  It doesn't help that it's been an on-again... off-again kind of project. In fact, looking back over the years in this blog, it's a bit embarrassing how long this project has gone on!  With all this hand work I've been doing though, I've decided it is once again...on again.  

To catch you up, I've been making these little 6-piece pinwheels out of trapezoids in basically values of light-light, light, medium, dark, and dark-dark.  I chose a palette of cool colors plus magenta.  After many false starts on an exact layout, I decided to let it grow organically.  I started piecing the pinwheels together by value in big "clumps".  Then this week, I started arranging some of the bigger clumps together to make the beginning of an actual top.  Let me repeat that...a beginning of an actual top.  (I know I didn't believe it either).   

So this is as far as I've gotten. For the most part, that big island there is all sewn together,   I do have several ziplock bags of pinwheels to sew into clumps, but at least now I can somewhere plan it out...a bit.  Just gettin' the dang thing started was hard!

Making life easier is changing the thread I was using to piece it with.    I've been using Wonderfil's decobob now instead of Aurifil 50 wt cotton.  Wowsy, do the seams go together much smoother and the little stitches disappear.  I did try the Invisifil but I found that the 100 wt was not strong enough and sometimes break with a good tug through the seams.  It's crazy the love affair I've started with these two threads though.  I even got them their own little thread boxes so I can stop hunting around looking for them.

So I got another night or two to work on these before the fourth installment of the Block of the Month comes out.  Wouldn't it be cool to get both quilts done this year?

Under things I Like...

I want to remind everyone that when shopping for your supplies, take a little time and surf the web.  It came up again this week when I was looking for the little thread packs of DecoBob.  Thread has gotten outrageous anymore like everything else.  On the official Wonderfil website, the pack I wanted was $23.10 .  But I found it on Amazon for $19.20.  While on Amazon, I picked out my Dritz thread boxes for $5-$7 each (depending on when you look - pricing on there is so weird right?) AND  a magnetic thread wand for 2 bucks.  Am I the last person to own one of these?  Why in the world did I not buy it sooner.  Wave it and magically it picks up all my pins from the floor...from my table....from my blanket...you get the drift!

Ohhh and even though we did manage to get 3" of snow on Tuesday, my crocuses did come out in full bloom.  With the snow coming and going this year, we've been able to enjoy them a lot longer than normal!

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Big Stitch Quilting on Off the Wall Friday

WoW!  What a busy week.  When I haven't been working at my day job, I've been working in my studio.  I decided once and for all to get "Rain, Rain" onto my quilting frame.  It all seemed a bit daunting because I haven't taken my frame out since the mid-2000's.  Then out of every task in quilting, basting a quilt is the one that I hate the most! Plus I finally wanted to try out big stitch quilting. So needless to say, I've been putting this off.  

I started with the basting.  I watched a handy video by Erica Arndt on how she to spray baste a large quilt.  I've been using spray basting on my smaller art quilts for years but never did a large one.  So, once I sewn together the backing and ironed it, I taped it to my floor.  (My studio has the original victorian floors from 150 years ago so a little tape is NOT going to harm it),  I layered my batting

(which had relaxed out all of the big wrinkles) and sprayed down the layer like Erica described.  Even with knee pads on it was exhausting. (How did I get to be so old!)  Paul took pity on me and did the top layer.  All in all, it took about 3 hours but it was MUCH faster than pin basting.  I used about 3/4 of a can of basting spray and it was not at all smelly so ventilation wasn't a problem.  Also, there wasn't much overspray.  

We put it on my quilting frame, which is a Hinterberg QX-2000.  Ya know, I had no idea how extinct
quilting frames have become over the last 30 years. Just as a lark, I started looking to see what is out there now...wow....barely any!!   Paul bought this for me early in the 90's as a surprise Christmas gift and I love it.  Because it has only two rails, you still have to baste the quilt, BUT it's super adjustable so you can flatten it out to quilt with friends or keep it at an angle to quilt by yourself.  Plus even after all these years, it's as good as new.  It also came with two sizes, 60" and 96" rails so that is handy.  I love to hand quilt so I'm hoping a resurgence in popularity is looming!

Every evening since I've sat down at my frame to do an hour or two of quilting.  It's been an adjustment.  First of all, I haven't quite figured out what needles I like the best for big stitch quilting.  The ones from Cory Pepper's big stitch quilting pack
seem to be working okay.  Then I have to remember to take a 1/4" stitch and to only load my needle up with 1 or 2 stitches.  After perfecting a 10-per-inch stitch on tiny needles, this seems so strange.  I'm constantly telling myself to take bigger stitches.  And it seems a lot tougher to get the needle through.  I'm not sure if it's the pearl cotton, the batting, the spray basting, the needle, or a little bit of it all.  

I do know that Valdani Pearl Cotton is amazing.  Not only are the colors gorgeous but it quilts up so nicely.  The funny thing is that I bought my two boxes of colors when Craftsy's shop went out of
business for about $27/box thinking I would find a use for them someday.  Little did I know that the big stitch quilting rage was around the corner and the boxes are now going for about $80.  (yes, EIGHTY DOLLARS!)  But after comparing it to 8-size DMC and Presencia, I definitely can see the difference. The hand-dyed colors are seamless and the thread is so smooth.   I still want to try Wonderfil's version but for now, I'm happy to use my fancy Valdani.  

After a week of quilting, my finger has a callus, my knees were sore and I'm still trying to get the hand of getting a big thread into a little hole.  I'm always shocked when people think quilting is an old lady's pastime when it is such hard work!  I'm sure it will get easier!!

Got any pointers for big stitch quilting?

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WonderFil Thread Pt 2 on Off the Wall Friday

 

After writing last week's post, I was really excited to try out some of the WonderFil threads I've been collecting.  They have been sending me nice samples for the whole pandemic and I've never gotten around to seeing if they actually worked in my Janome Horizon.  "Work" is defined as easily free motion quilted with little to no fussing or breakage.  I don't know about you but the one thing I HATE is having my thread continually break.  Not only does it annoy me but it ruins the creative flow I have when I quilt.  That was one of the main reasons I switched to Mettler's Polysheen.  I could easily switch my sewing machine foot to my darning foot and off I went.  No other adjustments were necessary.  I could FMQ till my bobbin ran out!  It's also why my Sulky rayons sit unused unless I need to straight stitch!

As for the WonderFil, I made this sheet using my printer and took an afternoon to test my threads.  I used DecoBob in the bobbin, a quilting or Metallic needle, a blue dot bobbin case, and just warm and natural batting.  I thought this was a handy size since it would fit nicely into a sheet protector in one of my binders.  

The Results

• Spagetti - 12 wt Cotton  - actually free motion nicely (don't ask me how)  It definitely is a hefty thread though!
• Glamore - 12 wt Rayon - not surprisingly I couldn't get to even begin to make a sample
• DTwist - 20 wt Rayon - Started off good, but eventually broke.  I think with some fussying I probably could get it sew, but really, who likes to fuss?!
• Fabulux/Splendor - 40 wt Rayon - both FMQ without breakage but the tension was off and I would have to fuss with that
• SpotLite - 40 wt Rayon Metallic - FMQ like a dream - yes  - I am shocked!  It will now be my go-to when I need a metallic for a project.  I stop designing things with metallics because I couldn't get them to work.  This one though did great and it has a nice pretty glitz to it!
• Silco - 40 wt Cotton - I had trouble with the tension.  Also, I felt like for a 40 wt it sat on top of the fabric a lot.  
• Mirage - 30 wt Rayon -WoW!  love this ... the tension was perfect - it sews wonderfully and its not too shiny
• Tutti/Efina - 50/60wt Cotton - as expected these quilted fine - but really how often do I quilt with cotton?
• DecoBob - 80 wt Poly - I'm happy to report that this probably was my favorite.  The tension was spot on and it has a nice fine quilting line.  I definitely can see myself using this more often when I need quilting but not the "Line".
• InvisaFil - 100 wt Poly - I could not get to quilt without breakage.  I'm sure it will straight stitch though and that 100 wt thickness is tiny, tiny!

Even though it took a long afternoon, I'm so glad to finally get these tested.  Now I know what I will and will not use or buy!

Under my other Likes...

With all this thread out I needed a place to organize it. None of these really had a home in my big thread
boxes, so I was looking for a smaller one that was economical, clear, and plastic.  After some searching ('cause you know there are 100 thread boxes out there), I settled on the Dritz Thread Storage Box.  It's a good size  (17 prongs) for a small collection of thread and I liked the $5.47 Amazon price.  I think the only thing I don't like is that the top doesn't snap on and off with any kind of latch.  Besides I already had one here so now I have a match set!!

Okay, I'm sure that is more than you ever wanted to know about my WonderFil sample thread...

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Wonderfil Mystery Bundle on Off the Wall Friday

Spotlight, Aqua

Okay, I'll admit it.  I'm turning into a thread geek.  I wouldn't say a thread snob but definitely a thread geek! It came on gradually.  I mean in the beginning, we were all taught that you MUST use cotton thread on your quilts because your quilts were made of all cotton.  Through experimentation, I found you could use all sorts of threads while making quilts (the biggest surprise was hand quilting with rayon on my drag around quilt.  It washed and wore fine!)  The more I explored, the more I found exciting new threads to try and of course, collect!  

Tutti, Mountain

So that brings me to my first "Haul" blog post. I decided to take a leap of faith and buy the Wonderfil Mystery Bundle.  I've made several purchases from them in the recent past and they were always really generous with their free samples. The deal was you get at least $100 worth of stuff for $45 shipped free.  They promise to include threads perfect for quilting, piecing, and general sewing. Crossing my fingers, I ordered.

I got....drum roll...

DecoBob, Dusty Rose

 1 Spool of DecoBob, 2000m,  80 wt polyester,  Dusty Rose...I  love this thread.  I already have big spools of all the neutrals for bobbin winding and small spools of all the neutrals for appliqueing and English paper piecing. It has totally replaced cotton when I English paper piece.  It also has replaced my love of Bottom Line threads since it's just that much thinner and shows less. For that matter being thinner it's cheaper (Bottom Line $7.60/1000 m) So I imagine I can use dusty rose sometime.  ($5.30)

1 Spool of Ahora, 40 wt polyester, Cream...this apparently glows in the dark.  Oh, that's new!  You  recharge it under lights or in the sun. Honestly, this is the only thing that I wasn't quite sure what I'd use it for, how it would work, and if I really needed it.   I'll let ya know! ($6)

Thread Dispenser

2 Spools of Tutti, 1000m, 50 wt cotton, Shell & Mountain...so this is their main cotton quilting/piecing thread line.  The interesting thing is that with a little math calculation the price/meter it is MORE than aurifil. (1000 m of aurifil - $10.31 US, Tutti $11.34 ea)

2 Spools of Spotlight, 1000m, 40 wt Metallic Rayon, Red & Aqua...these are apparently a metallic thread but made of rayon so it should quilt and embroider without breakage.  I've NEVER gotten a metallic to work with my machine so this ought to be interesting.  It definitely has a nice "metallic" shimmer to it, even more than a regular rayon.  I love the colors since red and aqua are definitely colors I will use for this kind of work!  ($16.40 ea)

1 Box of a 6 mini spool collection of InvisiFil, 100 wt polyester...I've tried this before to hand applique and EPP and found it too fine.  Now with this nice little collection, I'll try it in my machine to machine applique and free motion.  ($26)

Mini Spool Collection of InvisiFil- Great Colors Right?

1 Ultimate Thread Dispenser...I never thought to buy one of these but after watching the video Here, it has me wondering if it really is more than the latest gadget!  I have some threads that I can NOT get to feed right into my machine so if it works on them it's totally worth it.  I'll let you know.  ($16)

Retail that comes to $108.78

Plus they included a cute 2022 mini calendar which will fill a small space in my work from office and stickers (come on - who doesn't love stickers - do  you think it's inbred in us as little girls to love stickers or what?)

All and all, I totally thought it was worth the  $45.  I had a ton of fun opening it up and exploring exactly what they sent me.  I think it would have made it easier if they had included some kind of literature on what was what in there.  I had to track it all down on their website which actually is really nice to us and full of helpful information.

Plus now I can try all the different types of threads and report back on how they worked in my Janome!  I never had a stitch or thread sampler and I don't think it's a bad idea to have one.  

Any comments and suggestions on what thread I should try next would be welcome!

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Let's Talk Piecing Thread on Off the Wall Friday

 

Okay, I know fusing  quilt tops is popular with the time-crunched quilters of today....very popular.  But there are still those of us that are doing a lot of piecing.  I love to piece.  I love the texture that extra layer of fabric adds with the seams.  You can feel it every time you run your fingers over your work.  

All of this came to me this week, as I spent time hand piecing my pinwheels.  It's amazing what you think of when you quietly make stitch after stitch after stitch after stitch.  From there I got to thinking about the thread I was using and how different it was from my machine piecing thread.  For the pinwheels, I've been using a Wonderfil DecoBob  80 wt polyester and WoW!  what a

difference it's made in my English paper piecing.  

If the DecoBob made such a difference in my handwork, would changing my machine piecing thread make a difference too?  I mean, 50 wt cotton thread is 50 wt cotton thread, right?  Well, it turns out, after some investigation the answer is no.  

I took some time to research the most popular piecing threads that are being used by today's quilter.  I chose 50 wt since that is the weight I use.  Here's what I found.... 

Aurifil -2 ply Egyptian Cotton, Long staple...comes in 270 colors...made in Italy

Superior (Masterpiece) - 3 ply  Egyptian Extra Long  Staple ...comes in 79 colors  (I could not find where their thread is made)

Gutermann - Long Staple Cotton...comes in 240 colors...(I could not find if it was 2 or 3 ply, also where it was manufactured)

Wonderfil Konfetti - 3 ply Egyptian Long  Staple Cotton - 60 colors - made in Canada

A&E Signature - 3 ply Egyptian  Extra Long Staple  - 96 colors made in the USA

Mettler - Silk Finished - 2 ply Egyptian Long Staple - 250 colors - made in Germany

If anybody knows some of the information I couldn't find like what ply or manufacturing country please let me know and I'll edit the list.

Now, I know what you're thinking ...Nina what does all that mean ??....well I'll tell you.

Apparently, cotton grown in Egypt is the best in the world since it has the longest strands.  Longer strands means smoother thread.  Smoother thread means stronger thread with less lint.  Cotton is classified in 3 categories - Extra Long Cotton, Long Cotton and Short Cotton.  As the ranking implies Extra Long Cotton will create the strongest, smoothest thread.

Then there is the ply.  2 ply means that they take 2 strands and twist them to make your thread.  3 ply will make a stronger thread.  Both are very fine and smooth but 3 ply will always be stronger.

All these cottons are mercerized which gives them a smooth finished.

I found these facts interesting.  I mean, can the average quilter actually tell the difference between a 2 ply and a 3 ply?  Will having a Extra long Staple make a difference than a long staple?  I found it interesting that my guess for the most popular  - Aurifil  - has only 2 ply   - long cotton staple.  It boasts of low lint, but it stands to reason that a 2 ply thread will create less lint than a 3 ply.  Also, my guess is that its the most expensive with the biggest marketing budget.

I've used all of these threads at one time or another.  For years and years, I swore by signature piecing thread.  I would buy big cones of it and never had a problem with it.  About 5 years ago, I switched to aurifil and had the same great result.  I think the reason I switched was that it was more readily available at the the time hmmmmm and on sale.

I have tried the sample of Kofetti but not to a great extent.  I didn't care for gutermann since I got a lot of breakage.  Last on my list was the Mettler.  Don't ask me why but  the thread was just too "silky" to

easily use.   I got a lot of breakage - tangling with hand sewing and it was generally a pain.  I literally threw out any last spools of it.

Also, I want to mention that I don't have a big "stash" of piecing thread.  I normally just keep big cones of the white, light grey, dark grey and black handy.  

After this exploration, I'm thinking I'm going to try going back to Signature.  Not only do I like it's stats but I also like the fact it's American made.  Maybe I'll get a cone of it in and test it side by side against the aurifil....I'll let you know.

 

 

Okay ....so tell me....What are your experiences with piecing thread?  Does it change with the project or with machine.  Does price play into it??  Or the ease of where to buy it?

Let Me Know!! 

 

 

 

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Wonderfil Thread Review on Off the Wall Friday

 

Okay, I'll admit it.  I'm getting obsessed...with thread.   Yes, there are more dangerous and worse things to get obsessed with but still, it's getting out of hand.  It all started when I saw that people were using bobbin thread to English Paper Piece.  Then I started looking at  new and different thread lines that have come out in the last 10 years.  Then I started ordering samples, trying them out, watching videos...etc etc....You get the picture.  Yes, I've gone  down that rabbit hole of THREAD.  

So what have I learned in my journeys??  I found this simply amazing blog post by Nancy Purvis that shows the quality of threads under a microscope. This post was written in 2012 but still is SO interesting. Then there is Dr. Bob over at Superior Threads who has a really informative set of videos filled with practical knowledge of thread.  Some are videos on their products but most will give you thread knowledge that will make your sewing life easier. Yes it's basically Everything You Ever Wanted To Know about Thread, But Was Afraid to Ask!  Thennnnnn each brand of thread has not only information on their thread lines, but cheat sheets on what threads can be used for what applications and with what needles.   

See what I mean ???  A Rabbit Hole.  Most of the thread lines, I've tried in one shape or another through the years...all except Wonderfil.  Wonderfil is a Canadian company started in 1988 and their threads aren't widely available in my little part of  NWestern PA, so it's nice that their website is so easy to shop from.  They also have been giving out 4 packs of sample spools of their products with orders (I believe they were the ones that were from the cancelled AQS shows) so you can try different lines. FREE is perfect for trying things out! 

Now as always, I have no affiliation with anyone, anywhere with anything connected to quilting. (grin)

A Wonderfil Thread Review

I've made three orders with Wonderfil in the last few weeks.  The website is easy to navigate , shipping to the US is free and relatively fast, and there is a lot of helpful information on their site.  The threads come in small or large spools and they carry some really handy thread packs of different lines.  The thread is competitively price but it seems like some lines are limited in colors.  I started with the DecoBob line which is a 80 wt polyester thread. Compared to Bottom Line (60 wt polyester) , I felt it worked smoother in hand sewing for EPP and applique.  Plus its more affordable and offered in smaller spools packs which are really handy.  I did have a few spools that did not start smoothly (and I really need to get back to customer service about those)

That got me wondering....how would DecoBob work in my machine.  I have one big criteria in my

machine thread ... it needs to be LOW Maintenance.  Honestly, I have little patience for thread that breaks, has tension issues, needs special needles, won't feed evenly into my machine etc.  If you listen to the Dr. Bob videos though, a little knowledge goes a long way in most of these issues.  Still each machine (and operator) has different issues with different thread types.  

I said to myself, "Self, what would happen if I just grabbed a spool of thread, slapped on my free motion foot, put the pedal to the metal, and got quilting?"  I mean honestly that is how it usually happens.  Nothing is worse than when finally its time to put in thread work or free motion quilting, and your thread will not cooperate.    So here is  what  I found....

Aurifil 50 Wt Cotton   

This is what I use all the time pretty much for everything. I use light grey and dark grey big cones for piecing and bobbins.  I don't really tend to match my bobbin threads (even with quilting) and find the grey works with most colors.   Like everyone else, I find it works great in my machine with little lint considering its a cotton.  It does however leave a pretty big quilting line.  It sits on top of the fabric more.  Also, when I  get going at a little too fast it can break.  I personally think that is a operator issue rather than a thread issue.  (that photo should say 50 Wt - I keep forgetting I switched to 50 wt 10 yrs ago)

Wonderfil's Efina 60 Wt Cotton.  You wouldn't think that there wouldn't  be a noticeable difference between a 50 wt and a 60 wt but there definitely was.  It seemed to give a finer line that sank more into the fabric instead of resting on the top.  I had no problem machine quilting with it and it worked smoothly.  

Wonderfil's DecoBob 80 Wt Polyester.  

I don't know why I never thought to use bobbin thread on top!  Wow!!  This free motioned quilted easy and I love the line it gave.  It's super fine with just enough definition.  It tended to move easily and sink into the fabric.  I had no breakage even at my highest speeds.  

Wonderfil's InvisaFil 100  Wt Polyester

So this is where the first hiccup happened.  I had to change my needle from a universal 80 to a Microtex 80 to get this thread to free motion smoothly.  Even with that I had to slow down my speeds and take extra care.  There were still skipping stitches.  BUT this is the kind of weight that you can use instead of using a nylon visible thread.  It definitely looked like that on fabric without any kind of shine.  I have totally given up on using invisible thread because it has thrown off the timing of my machine twice and landed it it into the shop.  Also, ruined two  - yes - TWO - Bobbbin cases!

Anddddd....while rummaging around in my threads.....I found this .......several spools of 

Aurifil 100 wt polyester

I'm not even quite sure when I bought these but I know it was a long time ago. Wow!  these free motion like a dream and easily withstood my high speed crazy moments.  It even worked easily with a regular universal needle and the tension was perfect.  I really do need to search out some nice neutral colors.  I'm sure when I bought it, I had no idea of thread weights but this is one nice bobbin thread. 

Well that was fun!!  I also tried out Wonderfil's Fabulux which worked great and had a lot of the same characteristics of Mettler Polysheen thread which I love, love.  Lots of time I want a nice shiney kind of look to my quilting.  I started with rayons (aren't they pretty?) but never could them to work on a consistent basis.  Finally, decided that the Poly Sheen worked so much better  - came in a ton of colors and in a nice thread size.   The Fabulux is great but just doesn't have the color range that I would like. (not to mention Ihave a full set of polysheen now - lol)

Of course, this is all my experience with my machine and crazy quilting.  

Have you tried Wonderfil??  What did you think??  What is your favorite threads??

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