deneldacoop

I do a lot of fmq and i like to use surger thread in top and bobbin. Works very well for me.
Dena

AshleyR

I'm guilty of using surger thread too. Cheap and comes in lovely colors. I tend to "quilt to death" my quilts, so I'm not worried that it's not as durable as thicker thread, and, IMO, easy to dart around the quilt on (not dart as in "darts to make your clothes fit, I mean, zoom around with the thread!!) It's easy to make those little designs with. When I'm doing a larger pattern, I like a thicker thread.

Tartan

I've used a lot of different threads for FMQ. Do a few quilt samples with different threads and see what you like and more importantly, what your machine likes.

DogHouseMom

For me it depends on how much I want the quilting to show. If not a lot ... I'll use a matching (or blending) lighter weight thread (50wt Aurifil on top, and either same in bobbin or a Mettler 60wt). If I'm doing thread painting and it is going to be heavy I might use a 30 or 40 wt in the top (and 50wt in bobbin). If I want the quilting to really stand out I'll use a 12 or 28 wt.

I always ... and I do mean always ... quilt a sample sandwich with the threads and batting I am contemplating using and the fabric I am working with. I also practice the FMQ stitch I plan on using. I do this both to determine the best tension and bobbin wt thread, how it behaves in the machine, and to see how the color and thread wt are going to look on my piece.

SharonTX

Thank you all for your advice, I so appreciate it!

Dolphyngyrl

I would say buy a few samples of different kinds types and weights, make practice sandwiches and quilt them. Different threads give different types of looks so you might just like some over another. polyesters tend to be shinier than cottons. Every person has their own tastes. You might like isacord, you might like superior, sulky, king tut, star. There are so many to choose from. I have only practiced with sulky variagated 12wt and 30wt cotton and guttermans cotton, but i have heard great things about isacord but haven't gotten around to buying some, my recommendation is to try different things.

newbee3

well to start off I would use a real fine thread like silk that is what I really got started using and it is so forgiving not showing the mistakes.

azwendyg

When I first started FMQing, the thread mattered a lot. I could barely get a good stitch with "good" thread. Now though, after a few years of quilting, I'm more likely to pick the thread that has the color and sheen I'm looking for and I can usually get pretty good stitches. I find that I can now use thread that at first I thought "didn't work in my machine". (Really it was all about how I was moving the quilt, and over time I've gotten better at it.)