SuzSLO

How do you make decisions about decluttering you thread stash? Over the last year or so, I have been mostly sewing/quilting with Autifil and have that brand nicely organized.

But I have old Mettler, some other random stuff, lots of Dual Duty (cotton wrapped Poly) and lots of wooden spools filled with cotton thread. I use the old cotton thread for hand appliqué, but I probably have 20+ different shades and hues of every color. Total is about 200 spools, not including the Aurifil.

Any thoughts on what to keep and what to ditch?

Tartan

I use up random threads in the bobbins when piecing. For what to toss…do the thread snap test and if it’s too fragile, out it goes. Save any of the spools if they are wooden or if someone wants to use them for crafts. A glass jar full of multi colour spools of thread looks cute in the sewing room.

SuzSLO

Unfortunately, even my oldest threads pass the snap test. However, they are not wound very evenly, so I don’t use them as either top or bobbin thread on the machine.

Rhonda K

Is there a local school that has sewing class? They would love a donation of the different threads.

Even a local guild would use them or pass them along.

ladyinpurple135

We have a bag of all kinds and colors of thread in my smaller quilt. It has come in very handy when someone forgets or runs out of thread sewing charity quilts - or maybe needs just a certain color for hand sewing a binding, All the spools have come in very handy many times.

Sandy in Mooresville, NC

sewingpup

I give away thread I do not use if it is still good, I found some spools of those 3 for a dollar thread and those I just tossed out. I gave most of my dual duty coats and clarks to my nephew along with my little gem gold as he just wanted a machine and thread to do mending with. Our quilt guild had a rummage sale and I sold all my small spools of sulky thread along with a cute carrying case. I put my " Star thread: in a rummage sale for way cheap. I probably aught to get rid of more thread I very seldom use now like King Tut and colored serger thread (find I only use black, white, cream, and grey). Actually, If I ever run about of thread, which is not likely anytime soon, I will be more selective about what I buy and am thinking about going to a good poly thread like Superiors SoFine as you can actually use that for piecing as well as on my longarm. But for now I have quite the stash of Aurfil, metller cotton and mettler metrosene, Superior so fine, OMNI, and bottom line, RA rayon, RA poly, some sulky and some YLI. Yep, enough thread. Oh, I forgot all my hand stitching embroidery thread too of different types. Yep...way too much thread.

PurplePansies

I donate to Purple Heart or Goodwill.

Fizzle

This is timely as a friend brought in a bunch of quilting things from storage. From her mom. I was so tempted to keep some threads but i dont need anything! I did keep the threads that were on wooden spools! Add to my
Collection

Snooze2978

If nothing else, donate it to a thrift shop as that's what I did with a bunch of fabric I no longer wanted. Our thrift shop also have ladies making up quilts with some of the donated quilts and give them to the diability center they also run. They are a non-profit organization. Every couple years they also put out a quilt auction which I've donated a quilt or two. Hopefully I'll have a couple more for them the next auction.

cashs_mom

I've been doing EPP. While I mostly glue baste medallion by medallion, if I know I won't get back to the medallion for a few days I use left over thread to baste my pieces. I also use up extra thread in bobbins and for basting.

I'm curious, why you can wind your thread off the spool onto a bobbin and use it? I guess I don't understand why if they aren't wound evenly on the spool, they can't be wound onto a bobbin and used. I guess I've never run into that.