I have been free motion quilting my quilts and just purchased an embroidery machine. Can I use the same threads for the embroidering machine on my little sewing machine to do the free motion stuff? The woman who sold this to me also gave me her stash of threads and she recommended that I not use certain ones because she found a brand that was better for embroidering. It occurred to me that maybe I can use the bad ones for my quilt. They are really pretty colors and I hate to let them go to waste. Thanks for your input. by the way, the are not cotton thread.

Any embroidery thread you use for embroidering should be 40 wt., that will give you the best result.

That said, embroidery thread comes in 100% polyester, or rayon or metallic. I wouldn't recommend rayon or metallic for quilting, but the 100% polyester is fine. Embroidery thread has a sheen to it so when you stitch out the designs you get a nice, vibrant result. It's more expensive than regular thread because of the sheen.

If the "certain ones" are polyester, use them. They should work great!

P.S. If you use metallic thread for embroidering, be sure you use a metallic needle.

hey, thanks for your advice. really appreciate it. I won't use the metallic, but i will use the poly. Of course, i guess i should practice more before using these if they will stand out more :)

The sheen may really be pretty, depends on the colors you are working with. If you have some extra material, practice on an 8x8 square, use both sides of the material and the batting for the sample (if you're using batting). The sheen can be reflective and it could look different on a flat project (no batting) vs. a "patterned" project (with batting).

good point. I hate to practice but that would be wise before spoiling a whole quilt

yeah, i hate to practice too and quite honestly, i've never done a practice sew out on my embroidery machine, always go right to the project. I've ruined a couple of things but my success rate has far outweighed my messed it up rate.

As long as it's good quality thread, your machine will handle and your skill level will do so as well, you can use any type of thread to quilt with, including metallics, which are often used on art quilts, Christmas quilts, etc.

I have used embroidery thread for quilting and I love it :D:D:D

i just used a variegated (sp? word?) rayon thread on a quilt for the quilting. it is a decorative stitch in the ditch. It worked just fine for me. I don't have an embroidery machine however.

lol, good to see i am not alone in doing stuff like that.

Thanks all for your input! Mahalo