romanojg

I love using metallic but I wouldn't use it on a quilt. I don't think it would hold up to all the use and washing plus it will wear harder on the fabric. I normally only use cotton thread on cotton fabric unless I don't care if the longevity is there for the quilt;like for a tag a long for a kid. If I really wanted the scheen then I'd go with a poleyster because it will hold up to mulitple washing better than the rayon I normally use for embroidery items. That being said, I used rayon to make my daughters tshirt for work, it has her name and a picture of a dog getting a bath in an old fashioned tup (she's a groomer) and it gets washed alot and has held up really well. If heavy use and washing isn't going to happen with the quilt then I guess it doesn't matter what thread is used.

Now, one thing that helps a lot when using metallic besides making sure you have the correct needle is that if you put your spool down behind your machine so that the thread comes off the top. I used this thread successfully without using metallic needles but you have to have the correct size, if I didn't have a metallic needle then I'd use a topstitch. With my machine it automatically adjust the tension so that has never been an issue. Before using thread conditioner on your thread check with you machine dealer, they normally don't recommend it for the newer machines. But if all the other things you've been told don't work, try it. I would make sure to use a scrap sandwhich square to practice on to make sure its all going well before I'd do the actuall quilt. Good luck and post pics