October Aurifil Artisan Challenge: Project Featuring 3+ Thread Weights

I’m proud to be an Aurifil Artisan this year! Being an artisan means I get to use Aurifil thread and talk about how great it is (which it is). Every month, the Artisans are given a challenge, and this month the challenge was to make something using three or more thread weights.

Thread weight can be confusing to remember, but essentially - the larger the number, the thinner the thread.

Standard weight to piece and quilt with is 50wt. Some people prefer 40wt for this. 40wt is slightly thicker, so it stands out a little more if you use it for quilting.

My go-to for hand quilting is 12wt. It’s nice and thick, so you get a lot of great texture. Aurifil’s variety of color means that you can get really vibrant results with your hand quilting, and also match it to the fabric whenever you like.

For this project, I chose to finish the quilt I made during a workshop with Denyse Schmidt at the “A Gathering of Stitches” Retreat in Maine this summer. This quilt means a lot to me because of how special the retreat was, but also because each of the fabrics was chosen at random while piecing - everyone in my group piled up fabrics and we picked handfuls of them without looking. So this quilt has fabrics from my friends in it.

During the class, everyone made blocks randomly, letting the process happen without design influence or input from us.

After all the blocks were made, we were able to arrange them into a design that spoke to us. I chose to add in some navy background fabric. I wanted to make it more asymmetrical, and incorporate slices of horizontal offcuts.

When I got home from the retreat, I immediately put the pieced top on my longarm and started to quilt.

I used 50wt Aurifil thread for the colorful stripes. Some of them were done with matching thread, and some with contrasting. In the spirit of the way the quilt was pieced, I even chose some randomly from a bag without looking, quilting down whatever I happened to choose. It led to some interesting and unexpected color combinations.

I left some spaces open, because I planned to go in afterward and add in hand quilting with 12wt thread.

Before I removed it from the frame, I went over all of the navy background space with very dense organic matchstick quilting, all in 40wt thread. I love how it’s slightly thicker and really adds a lot of nice texture.

The very dense quilting makes the unquilted parts really pop up, and I love that.

Adding hand quilting is one of my favorite parts, too. It’s a chance to really slow down and relax into the project. I worked with different colors of 12wt thread, letting my mood tell me what color to use where, and how much of it to use before moving on.

I really love the play of different thicknesses of fabric stripes and thread, and the different textures that all the thread weights give to it.

There’s a loveliness in the imperfection of it. Every section is meandering wherever it feels like going. Nothing is rushed.

I especially enjoy the colors that I never would have chosen for it. That was all chance, and it delights me.

I trimmed the finish quilt to be not-quite-square. It only feels right that it’s a little wonky. It’s doing its own thing, and there’s a movement to it.

This one will be displayed on the wall in my living room, and every time I see it I’ll be reminded of that summer I made it, surrounded by strangers who unexpectedly became friends. It’s a rich mix of unexpected color and texture, and it just works together.