Quilting with Variegated Thread // Try it Tuesday

 Have you ever tried quilting with variegated thread? I know variegated thread is really popular among some quilters and not at all among others.I usually quilt with it once or twice a year. I like using variegated thread when fabrics are different ranges of the same color (the greens in my sister's wedding in 2010), or when there are SO many colors that I'm not sure what color thread to use.

This was the case with this I-Spy quilt I made in 2010 for my kids, which I think is tucked away somewhere. I don't even have a picture of the finished quilt, but a multi-colored variegated thread was perfect!Last night, I was looking for the "right" thread color for my Lush quilt top and came across this pretty Aurifil variegated thread. I decided to give it a go, and I'm so happy I did!Variegated thread is easy to find, and most thread manufacturers offer it in one form or another.One thing I liked about this particular thread is that most of the thread runs from cream to dark tan--there isn't a lot of dark brown in the thread, and the dark spots are just two or so inches long. It provides depth and interest without having very large patches of dark brown thread on a mostly light quilt top. You can see what I mean just above the spool of thread in the picture above.I'm not sure I will use it very often, but I recommend trying variegated thread sometime for the right project. It's just different enough to add interest without distracting too much from the top, and who knows, you may love it!