Seems like my posts are falling into hyperspace tonight. I don't know what happened to both versions of my question.
Anyhow, here's what I found on the answer. Laci's in-house cotton thread for $3.00 is a long fiber thread, I'm going for it and not paying the big bucks for "Egyptian cotton". Yours, Dora -------------------------------------- Long staple (Egyptian) cotton is both strong and smooth. For machine embroidery and quilting, lacemaking and heirloom sewing, as well as everyday seaming. Which is better, long-staple cotton or Egyptian Cotton? Long-staple cotton is a classification for any cotton with fibers from 1 1/8" to 2 �" long. Outstanding types of this cotton are Pima, Egyptian, and Sea Island cotton. Egyptian cotton is a type of long-staple cotton, which is largely grown in the Nile River Valley. Cotton Thread Cotton threads are made by spinning together lengths of cotton staple into single bundles called plies. (Short-staple cotton fibers are referred to as cotton peeler; long staple cotton fibers are referred to as SAK or pima.) Two or more plies are then twisted together to produce a thread of the desired size. Many different finishes (such as hot wax, silicone, mercerized and glazed) may be applied to cotton threads to enhance the sewing performance for specific applications. What are the differences between the various types of sheets? Egyptian cotton is a unique, long staple cotton grown exclusively in the Nile River Valley. The very fine fibers vary in length; averaging 1 1/8 to 1 1/2 inches, making it one of the world's strongest, most lustrous cotton fibers. Supima cotton is an extra-long staple cotton, scientifically developed and produced only by members of the Supima (Superior Pima) Association of America. The 1 3/8 fibers are uniform in length, making them stronger than other long staple varieties, and add to the softness of the cloth. Supima sheets have an extremely soft, silky finish. Pima Cotton is a long staple cotton originally grown in Arizona by the Pima Indians, and is now domestically produced in Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, and California. The strong fibers average 1 3/8 to 1 5/8 in length and are woven into fine cotton sheeting fabric. American cotton is the standard cotton fiber grown in the USA for sheeting fabric, and are commonly used in combed cotton yarns. Cotton - The soft white, downy hairs or fibers filling the seed pods of various shrubby plants of the mallow family and used in making thread or fabric. Pima Cotton - A variety of fine, strong cotton developed from Egyptian stock and primarily grown in the southwestern United States Egyptian Cotton - A strong, silky, long staple cotton cultivated primarily in Egypt. Egyptian cotton has long fibers (staple) and is used to make very high quality textile yarns. Sea Island Cotton - Often considered the finest cotton in the world. This long staple cotton was originally grown on the islands off the coast of Georgia and South Carolina. As a general rule of thumb, the longer the staple length of the fibers, the better the quality of thread produced. YLI Cotton threads and Mettler's cotton threads are examples of cotton threads produced with long staple cotton. The highest quality spun polyester, such as Mettler� and Gutermann� are produced from longer staple fibers. 1) Mettler threads are made of long fiber polyester or Egyptian cotton which results in less snagging, knotting, and breaking. The cotton threads do not shrink which prevents puckering after pressing and washing. There are other similar brands of thread on the market (Dual Duty is not one of them) but I have not had experience with them so I cannot speak intelligently about Gutterman or Molynike (sp?) threads. I have been told (even by a shop owner in Germany) that Mettler threads are the best quality in the world. They are made in Switzlerland just like our beloved Berninas. Bernina of America used to distribute Mettler threads but they have not done so for many years. I have forgotten who has the distribution rights at the present time. It keeps changing. Dual Duty thread has a polyester core covered with shorter cotton fibers. My machines refuse to sew with it. 1) Metrosene plus with the red label (sometimes black) article #1161 is 100% polyester 100/3. It is a three-ply thread especially suitable for sewing synthetic fibers or blends. It is very strong and has elasticity. Very good for knits as well as for wovens. Use this thread for dressmaking, home dec, crafts. Both DMC and Mettler use long fiber cottons and are consistent in diameter which results in a smoother and more uniform stitch. For the bobbin, I recommend Mettler 60 weight thread. I have never used Bobbinfil and know very little about it. Perhaps someone else can fill us in about it. According to Harriet Hargrave, basting cotton is a short-fiber thread which creates a lot of lint, has an uneven diameter and the thickness causes excessive buildup. For those of you who are wondering why I am slighting Madeira threads, it is only because I am not very familiar with them. They do make long staple Egyptian cotton threads which they call Tanne in 50 and 30 weight. http://www.lacis.com/catalog/catalog.html FINE SEWING THREAD. Mercerized, long fiber cotton thread, size 140/2, on a 500 yard spool. Recommended for French hand and machine sewing. Available in white or ecru in sizes 80/2 (BT07) $3.00 , 100/2 (BT09) $3.00 , 120/2 (BT11) $3.00 and 140/2 (BT13) $3.00 . - To unsubscribe send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] containing the line: unsubscribe lace [EMAIL PROTECTED]
