Haha if it WAS from the year of the flood....imagine what it would look like today. LOL

Maybe she was drumming up more business for the LQS? I have about five 16-qt containers of thread that I've gotten at estate sales, and that includes embroidery thread. I have only tossed out two spools because they were fragile. The rest is perfectly fine and I've been happily sewing away with it. I think they lasted more than a year!

Different threads do have a shelf - life. However, it is mostly the embroidery threads that tend to deteriorate quickly and snap etc. if you keep your thread out of the sun and in reasonable storage, you shouldn't have too much trouble with it. I use stuff that was my grandma's and it is still going strongly.

ditto...

We used to have sewing factories in my area and the thread was taking over from buying at yard sales. I set a dozen cones on the floor, ran the threads up thru an eye hook and crocheted a throw rug with them, tying in when one ran out.

Its still on the floor and wearing well. Thread is tough stuff.

If that were true, all of our quilts would fall apart and the end of a year.

That teacher sounds like quite a saleswoman! If a thread gives me problems out it goes but I don't throw it out just because ist is last year's model. Aren't quilts supposed to last for years???? Stands to reason that thread does too.

I have a friend who used to teach for a LQS. She wasn't asked back because she didn't push new product enough. She was a great teacher she just didn't sell enough. Sad.

I've always done the stretch and tug test on threads.

My neighbor recently brought over her stash of threads and donated them to me. She told me there was something wrong with the tension on her machine and couldn't afford to fix it. Most of these spools were most likely older than me and she was shocked when I started testing the thread. Most were so old, I hardly had to tug to get them to break. I sent her home with a spool of my newer thread and suddenly her machine is "fixed".

On a side note, a lot of the thread was on wooden spools, so now I have those to use on a craft project.

i AGREE!

Ditto to this. I am still using thread from many years ago.

Threw out some old thread from 80s and 90s But the teacher who told you to get new thread is a jerk, when it was only a year old.

I have 16 year old thread that I accummulated working in a machine dealership shop. If in doubt, I test it for strength and breakage.

If that were true, why do they sell those wooden thread holders? I don't believe you'd be using that many spools at one time, do you? I had never heard that before and would never throw away a spool that still had thread on it.

LOL- I probably do have thread that old! I have a tendency to buy and throw it in the drawer, so it is forgotten until needed. I think if it were a major issue the spools would be dated, no? I throw it out if it is breaking and giving me a fit sewing, new, old or in between. That may be an ignorant way to decide, but works for me. Better quality thread is the bigger issue.

I'm with you Maia. I've never heard such rubbish. I wonder how long her quilts last.
If anyone thinks their thread is a bit dry place it in the freezer for a couple of days.

Use a new needle for every project - but NOT new thread. Never heard that!! I make sure any older thread I use is good quality - not "slubby" or breaks easily, but if it matches, use it!

At a Ricky Tims seminar a few years back, I asked Bob of Superior Threads if thread I have from my grandmother, which dates back to the 40's thru the 60's (or even older)was okay to use in piecing. He replied "Don't take the chance on anything that old. However, fiber technology has improved and today's threads will no doubt stand up better than those of the first half of the 1900's". He was right...most of those threads don't pass the stretch test. Like the posts about using them up for basting, test designs, etc. I always use the "stretch" test and never throw thread away.

Maybe she owns shares in a thread company :-D

I got thread from my mother's stash when she passed away. I'll bet some of it is older than some of you!!!! I still use it unless it breaks very easily. I recently was at a vintage fashion show and there were dresses and suits from the 20's and even earlier. Seams looked OK to me and we know that the garments were probably not re-sewn. I think that maybe the instructor was being paid on a commission basis- the more supplies bought- the more she made. Don't mean to be cynical but it seems that places are always thinking up new ways to get the consumer to spend money. Off topic- BUT- just card a card yesterday from a magazine I had a subscription to- reputable magazine- $4.99 for your first year- the card stated that they were automatically going to renew my subscription as a "courtesy" to me and that if I didn't want to continue, I had to write "Cancel" on the invoice they would send out. that would mean I would also have to use my time and my stamp!!!! Seriously?!?!?!?!

She must own stock in a thread company. Sometimes I put the spool or cone in the frig for a while before I use it but if it doesn't fall apart a the slightest tug, I use it.

This is what I was thinking. How could thread possibly go bad in a years time when we have quilts that are decades old that are still being held together by thread?

Some of my thread is 10 yrs. old or more and still strong and usable. I think that teacher was just trying to make some money for the store!

I agree that thread lasts a long time. If not, then all the clothes we wear that are over a year old would have fallen apart at the seams by now. I have a 70-year old quilt, the fabrics have frayed, but the threads at the seams and borders were still intact.
Nah, she's trying to drum up business for the LQS. She could be a tightwad and would probably pick up all the threads thrown away for her own use (jmho).

what paperprincess said is true and just don't store it where the sun shines on it I have taken a lot of quilt shop classes and never heard that before

I believe she is just trying to get you to buy something. No need for new thread. Use what you have.

I agree. I buy my thread on the cones 5000 + yards. I do not throw them out, some I have had for at least 10 years and they are still strong.

I have some very old thread (60 years, maybe?) that my MIL used for mending. If it's still tightly wrapped on a spool, what's going to cause it to go bad? It isn't exposed to the outside air. If I use it, I discard the first few wraps, but it seems as strong as anything else I have.

Toss away perfectly good thread? I don't think so. I agree with Paper Princess: check older threads by trying to stretch & break them. If it breaks easily, discard it, otherwise, it's good to go.

I hope this isn't true because I have thread that belonged to my Mother that I'm using and she's been gone for 23 years. I always test the thread before I use it, but I don't throw anything away unless it's bad.

I took a class at the local Hancock store once. The gal told us we had to purchase the fabric, thread, needles, etc there. The ones we had at home were not good enough to do a project with at their location. We were taught to use the color wheel and had to buy everything the instructor picked out. The class was $40 and by the end of the night, I was sick - my bill was $159.00! Needless to say I hated that project.

OK, the way I am seeing this? That Instructor OWNS a thread company? :thumbdown:

Craziness. Thread can last much longer than one year! :roll:
OK, another nutty thought debunked I hope :)

Sharon, what on earth did you make? WOWOW, I would have fainted dead pn the spot.
Julie

While what you heard may have been correct a such ... hearing it out of context does not give you the full story. There might be some specific reasons what they were talking about. If you heard it, why didn't you ask the person tending the shop for clarification?



That being said, I am in the keep it and use it camp.
Fibre technology has come a long way, so I'm sure any we purchase now will be usable for a long time with out worries.
Periodically though, I do try to downsize my thread stash, just in case!

Hmmm... Sounds like she worked for the government before she taught quilting classes. Ha!

I have thread from years of storing....the kind that you needed a specific color that's not primary colors. I've never had problems using these old threads when using them years later for other projects.

I agree. I've had some of my thread for YEARS and rarely have had any problems. I like to stock up with thread and thread sets too so that I have a good selection at all times and don't have to run out to match every new project.

DITTO!

I've some that predates the flood and it is still good. However, I always check it by trying to break it before I use it. froggyintexas

I have thread that is over 20 yr old and is still good. what nonsense. She thought she could con some new people into buying more thread and maybe she got something in return for that type of thing. Who knows now a days.

That sounds like a dumb, store-serving comment. Can you what a brand new quilter would think.