Well its nice to hear all this information. I went and bought another $50.00 of emb. thread at Joannes yesterday. Sale has Guterman at 40% off. I am using a lot of muted shades in the Victorian designs, and it is nice to know regular sewing thread is acceptable, in a pinch. I was leary about that It really is so much fun putting that special little touch on things! Thanks for the input, and for those who have not tried machine embroidery, get busy, you will love it!