Hi Suzanne,
I don't think you can generalize in any way. Ironically, I bought
about a dozen very large spools of Belding Corticelli silk thread
that are of unknown age but at least pre-70s and so far (knock-wood)
they have all been sound. I have tried the button-hole twist yet
since they are in rather peculiar colours, but there was no way
passing them up when they were being cleared out of an old tailoring
supply shop a couple of dollars a spool.
Besides, the lady who officiated our wedding was a textile
conservator you should have seen the age of some of the spools of
things she worked with, and they didn't disintegrate in her
hands... So, after all that, I think it all comes down to an
individual spool basis. I would personally go for it and have fun!
Cheers,
Danielle
At 09:54 PM 1/15/2013, you wrote:
Here's an odd question: How long does cotton or silk sewing thread last?
At work today, we found an old cigar box full of Belding Corticelli
thread that probably dates back to the early 1950s. (The small
spools of cotton were priced at 15 cents and the large ones at 25
cents.) I was admiring the beautiful shades of green. . . and then
everyone else said it would all have to be thrown out because it was
"too old" to use in machine sewing.
I'd never heard of thread going bad so now I'm wondering if I was
just daydreaming that day in home ec class [quite likely!] or if
this is common knowledge for everyone but me? (I also have a friend
who refuses to use vintage cotton fabric because it might rip, so
there's another question for you!) I reeled out one spool of white
and pulled hard, and it does seem thinner than the polyester stuff
they sell most places these days--but does that mean it won't work
even for lightweight projects? Such a waste! :-(
Suzanne
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