Originally Posted by
Helen54
I am absolutely new to quilting. I get my sewing machine tomorrow and I was looking at thread today. It's Gutermann's 100% natural cotton sewing thread and it says cotton Ne 50-30 wt. Is this a suitable thread for quilting?
I'm assuming that means it's a 30wt thread, which is a bit thick for piecing. I have no idea what the "Ne 50" means, but there is so much difference between a 30 wt and a 50 wt, that I can't imagine the 50 applies to weight. The lower the weight, the thicker the thread, and vice versa: the higher the weight, the thinner the thread.
I always use 40wt Masterpiece from Superior Threads for piecing. You can get a large cone of a basic color -- beige, light gray, off white, etc. and it will last you forever! And it's designed and made strictly for piecing. You can piece anything with those colors, so don't think you have to match the thread with the fabric just for piecing. You do for quilting, of course. I use Superior Thread's "King Tut" for quilting, and they have wonderful pre-filled bobbins of lots of colors that I use. Sometimes the bottom thread is a different color than the top. For example, I did a cream/light brown/blue top with a solid blue backing. So I used blue thread in the bottom, and a variegated thread for the top.
Even if you don't use Superior Threads, poke around their site. There is a ton of information on threads, weights, cotton VS polyester, etc. that was so good for me to learn as a Newbie.