Embroidery thread comparison for beautiful embroidery
However lovingly a design has been digitised or traced: if the thread doesn't suit the fabric, the technique and the look you're after, the result can quickly look messy. A good embroidery thread comparison therefore helps you with more than just choosing colours. It plays a part in whether fill areas come out even, outlines stay crisp and your project still brings you joy after many washes.
What really matters when comparing embroidery threads
Embroidery thread isn't simply colourful sewing thread. It's made for visible stitches and is designed to show off colour, sheen or texture. Which type is right depends mainly on whether you embroider by machine or by hand, which fabric you're working with and how much wear the finished piece will get.
Embroidered children's trousers have different requirements from a delicate lettering design on a linen napkin. For clothing, wash resistance and tensile strength are especially important. For pictures, home décor or traditional hand embroidery, on the other hand, the feel of the thread can take centre stage. The most expensive thread isn't automatically the best choice – what matters is that the material and the project go together.
Also look out for an even thread thickness and neat winding. Good-quality thread runs more smoothly through the machine, produces less lint and creates a more even stitch. Especially with densely stitched designs, that saves you time and nerves.
Viscose, polyester or cotton?
Viscose embroidery thread for a rich sheen
Viscose is the classic favourite for machine embroidery. The thread has a lovely, silky sheen and makes colours look particularly vibrant. Floral designs, names on gift textiles, delicate ornaments and decorative appliqués all benefit from this lively surface.
The downside: viscose is a little more delicate than polyester. On children's clothes that are washed very often, sportswear or bags that take a lot of wear, it can reach its limits more quickly. For many garment and home décor projects, though, it's still a beautiful choice, as long as you follow the care instructions and work with a suitable embroidery stabiliser.
Polyester embroidery thread for everyday use and frequent washing
Polyester embroidery thread is especially strong, colourfast and easy care. It copes well with frequent washing, making it ideal for children's clothing, towels, workwear, bags or projects that are used outdoors. It usually looks a little less silky than viscose, but modern qualities still offer an attractive sheen.
If you're embroidering a home-sewn top, a drawstring bag or a hat, polyester is often the more straightforward choice. It also shows its strengths with bold colours and designs that are exposed to a lot of friction. For a subtle vintage look, however, its sheen can come across as too modern.
Cotton thread for a natural look
Cotton embroidery thread has a rather matt, warm character. It goes wonderfully with linen, muslin, cotton fabrics and projects in a natural or nostalgic style. It's particularly popular for hand embroidery, for example for cross stitch, small embellishments on clothing, monograms or embroidered pictures.
Compared with polyester, cotton is less resistant to abrasion and can produce more lint when machine embroidering. That doesn't mean it's unsuitable. It just needs a little more attention: clean your machine regularly and, for fine designs, choose a thread that suits the needle and the pattern. For visible hand-embroidered details on natural fabrics, cotton is often exactly right.
Thread weight determines detail and coverage
For machine embroidery thread, weight 40 is a tried-and-tested standard. It works for most embroidery files and offers a good balance of fine detail, solid coverage and stable stitches. If an embroidery file has been designed for weight 40 thread, you should start by using that too.
Finer thread, such as weight 60, can make sense for small lettering, mini designs and very fine lines. It's less bulky and makes details look crisper. In return, it often needs a correspondingly fine needle and possibly an adjusted embroidery file. Thread that's too fine in a densely digitised standard design can make the fill look unexpectedly patchy.
Thicker thread is a deliberate way to make a statement. It's suitable for eye-catching lines, lettering or raised effects, but it needs a design with enough space between the stitches. If thread that's too thick is used with a very dense file, it bunches up on the surface of the fabric. That can lead to skipped stitches, untidy outlines or a stiff feel.
Bobbin thread and top thread need to work together
The visible top thread usually gets most of the attention. But for a neat embroidered result, the bobbin thread is just as important. In machine embroidery, a particularly fine bobbin thread is often used. It ensures there's less bulk on the back and that the top threads sit neatly on the surface of the fabric.
Wherever possible, use a bobbin thread that's suitable for your embroidery machine and your project. A bobbin thread that's too thick or unsuitable can alter the thread tension. If small dots of bobbin thread show on the right side, or the top thread gets pulled through to the back, start by checking the threading, needle, thread path and tension. Often the cause isn't the design, but a small interplay of these factors.
The needle should also suit the thread. For standard embroidery thread, an embroidery needle in the right size is a good basis. It has a suitable eye and is gentle on both thread and fabric. With metallic or speciality threads, you may need a special needle so the thread doesn't fray or snap.
Use speciality threads deliberately, not at random
Metallic thread, effect thread, woolly threads or fluorescent varieties turn simple embroidery into a real eye-catcher. They're not a replacement for standard thread, though, but a lovely addition. Metallic thread, for instance, looks festive on stars, Christmas designs and fine accents, but because of its surface it's more temperamental running through the machine.
Test speciality threads on an offcut of the actual fabric before starting the real project. Reduce the speed if needed and work with a suitable needle. That way you'll spot early on whether the thread runs smoothly and whether the effect suits the design. Over large areas, effect threads can quickly become overpowering – a small touch of shimmer often looks more beautiful.
For hand embroidery, stranded embroidery cotton is particularly versatile. You can separate the strands and decide for yourself whether a line will be fine or bold. Special wool and textured threads are ideal for raised flowers, fluffy animal designs or visible texture. Here, smooth running in a machine matters less – what counts all the more is how it feels to stitch and the surface you want to achieve.
Choosing colours: think about screen, fabric and light
Colours can look different on a screen than they do next to your fabric. A red that seems clear and cool online may turn out noticeably warmer in your hand. So, wherever possible, put thread and fabric side by side in daylight. Especially with white, beige, grey, pink and blue, subtle undertones make a big difference.
Tone-on-tone looks elegant and calm when the thread and fabric contrast only slightly. If you want a name or design to stand out straight away, you'll need enough contrast. On patterned fabrics, the thread colour can be bolder so it doesn't disappear between the motifs. On a very busy fabric, it can make sense to use just one or two colours.
For multicoloured embroidery files, it's worth not just buying according to the colour chart. Think about which shades you could use across several projects. A well-chosen basic collection with black, white, cream, grey, navy, red, green and a few favourite colours is often more useful than lots of individual spools that hardly go together later on.
Understanding common embroidery problems
If a thread keeps snapping, the thread isn't automatically to blame. First check whether the needle is blunt, bent or inserted incorrectly. A burr on the needle eye, unfavourable thread tension, incorrectly threaded thread or a spool net that's too small can also cause problems.
Lint on the back or between stitches is more likely with cotton thread and dense designs. In that case, regular machine cleaning should be part of your project planning. If embroidered areas start to pucker, the cause is usually a missing or unsuitable stabiliser rather than the quality of the thread. The fabric needs stability while you embroider so that the stitches don't pull on it.
Whenever you try out a new thread, always stitch a small sample using the same fabric, stabiliser and part of the design. It only takes a few minutes and tells you far more than a test on any old scrap of fabric.
At Die Stoffkönigin you'll find embroidery supplies for all kinds of projects – and if you can't decide between two types of thread or shades, personal advice can help you match your choice to the fabric, design and purpose. That way, a lovely idea becomes an embroidered piece that still looks neat, harmonious and durable on second glance.
