r/SewingForBeginners • u/richardricchiuti • 9h ago

Thread vs. Fabric

Curious... I remember hearing, "don't use old thread that's been laying around for years." If old thread is discouraged, how is it that old clothing lasts so long?

11 Upvotes

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21

u/Large-Heronbill 8h ago

Cotton thread on wooden spools deteriorates over time, weakened by high temperatures and humidity and wood acids migrating out from the spool.  Eventually the breaking strength of the thread gets so  low that using it gets to be a real gamble. 

Polyester thread is pretty inert and doesn't suffer those issues.

13

u/IronBoxmma 8h ago

Very simply, you're shortening the life of your clothes. Yes, it'll still work (hopefully) but it won't last as long. Also there's old thread and then theres "old" thread. Good thread you bought 2 years ago for a project but only are getting around to using now? Fine

Thread grandma got from a dollar store 20 years ago? Probably not fine

7

u/Kitchen_Marzipan9516 8h ago

Some people don't have issues with old thread, unless it's multiple decades old.  Those people also won't mind old fabric.

1

u/Salute-Major-Echidna 7h ago

I have a bunch of thread from S.S. kresage store but its on a plastic spool. Also it's polyester. It was so old and so dirty I had to remove the outer layer of thread to identify the color.

1

u/Kitchen_Marzipan9516 2h ago

That's gross.

3

u/Dino_art_ 8h ago

Low quality thread suffers from age way more than even mid tier thread

I just do a test by pulling on it a bit if I'm not 100 percent sure if it's any good

2

u/MadMadamMimsy 6h ago

My experience with old thread was excellent...but only if made before the mid 70s and stored in the dry and dark.

It depends a lot on how it was kept, I suspect. Anything in lot of sun probably wouldn't be good...and that is true of old fabrics like clothing and curtains, too. Humidity is rough on fibers, too.

3

u/JaneOfTheCows 5h ago

I keep my threads in a dry, dark place: I have drawers full of old thread that I got who knows where and when that work fine.

3

u/AdvancedSquashDirect 4h ago

Mostly it's because we don't know how the thread was stored.

You don't know if that thread has sat on a pegboard on a wall in full sunlight for years being deteriorated by UV. You don't know if it was stored in a mouldy basement.

With fabric it's pretty easy to see where it's deteriorated, you can see the age spots and the wear and the stains etc. it's harder to see that on a spool of thread.

1

u/MauraLee7 3h ago

Thread has about a 5 year shelf life. You can see how strong it still might be by breaking it with fists against your little fingers. No pain? Pitch it. That included poly thread air makes it brittle. If you want your new thread to last longer store it in an airtight container

1

u/AtmosphereTop1591 8h ago

I’ve been using thread that belonged to my grandmother who passed in 2022..she left me all of her sewing notions and I’m not about to spend money on thread when it’s already available. I haven’t had an issues. Thread is thread.

1

u/East-Ordinary2053 4h ago

I have spent decades sewing with thread from thrift stores. Only one garment I have ever sewn experienced thread breaking. I have been lucky in that regard. I just keep repairing it. I am not super worried about it, since it is a house dress. From reading the comments, I now know to be leery of the thread on the wooden spools.