The Silk Road

The lustre and wonderful smoothness of silk thread is amazing. Last week I mentioned I was waiting on the arrival of some silk threads with a view to hand quilting Peaceful Night. Silk seemed to be the perfect choice, being a natural thread yet also having a shimmering effect. My first order of silk threads came all the way from Superior Threads in the US. The Quilter's Silks (above) are a  beautiful, soft 16wt thread and although they come in 36 colours, this seems rather limited once you try to colour match. The White, Grey Stone and Black should work perfectly with Peaceful Night.

I chose just one card of Buttonhole Silk, also a 16 wt but twisted a little more tightly (above left) and a spool of Superior's Kimono Silk which is a 100wt thread (above right and in the photo with the Quilter's Silks). Each of these 100% silk threads are made in Japan and feel absolutely wonderful.

A few days after ordering from Superior Threads I stumbled upon some Gutermann Buttonhole Twist silks (R 753) in a 12 wt on eBay - in Australia. I was delighted to scoop up a variety of colours at a reasonable cost, giving me the opportunity to colour match to my EPP stars. These are also 100% silk but have been made in several different countries. I'm not sure if these are still available for purchase in Australia but did manage to find a retailer in the US ( NO international shipping) and another US retailer who ships internationally and stocks Gutermann R 753 in 400m cobs only (very good value).

Yesterday I finished stitching the edge sections to Peaceful Night, spurred on by looking at all my beautiful, new, shiny silk threads! I can hardly wait to baste this quilt and begin the fun of hand quilting with these sumptuous silks.

These beautiful natural threads look and feel wonderfully luxurious. Lines from Beatrix Potter's Tailor of Gloucester run through my mind. Silk has indeed been recognised as a luxury thread for centuries, indeed thousands of years! I think there will be much more silk in my sewing future!


Superior Threads generously provided me with a gift certificate at the perfect time to assist my purchase of something new and special from their extensive range of threads, needles and notions. 

Sharing at WIP Wednesday.