Applique
 

Can I use DMC thread to applique with? The lady who is teaching me says no but I've asked a few people and they've said I could.

Sounds like the lady who is teaching you is a member of the quilt police force. You can use whatever you'd like, just keep in mind that the heavier the thread the more the stitches will show. This, however, is a design choice. The only other issue is that if you use floss, it sometimes runs, so do a few stitches on a sample & run it thru the wash.

I had been using silk for mine and it is nearly invisible, but was having so much trouble with it breaking. So I put Sewer's Aid on it and it helped keep it from doing squirrelly things, but didn't stop the breakage. I will follow this thread and wonder what IS the best for this. Thanks for starting the thread.

Ditto what she said. A lot of it is in the look you want. Just practice with it. I've used DMC but only a strand or 2. No problems.

I use Bottom Line thread for my applique. It is stronger than DMC floss. I would use the floss to embellish the blocks though. Bottom line (pun intended) the choice is yours!

I'm doing hand applique. First try at this. The top quilt is what Im doing. http://www.bordercreekstation.com/publications.html I'm calling this an audition quilt. I want to try and stretch my skills to the next limit. I'm using a Jan Patek tutorial to work on the applique.

P.S would it be easier to use a hoop to keep the fabric straight?

For hand applique, I use the Mettler Silk thread, which is 100% cotton. Why they call it "Silk" is anybody's guess. It is a 50/2 thread. The finer the thread, the less visible it is. I have also used silk thread, which is 100 weight, and it is almost invisible. I would not recommend using DMC unless you are doing a buttonhole stitch.

For machine applique, I recommend a 40 weight polyester thread, like the Superior So Fine, if you want to see the stitching. If you don't want to see the stitching, use a monofilament thread with a 60/8 needle.