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Rayon thread is a long standing favourite among embroiderers. It has a luxurious feel with the reflective qualities of silk.
Sulky Rayon manufactured by Gunold and supplied in the UK by GS UK is a high quality embroidery thread.
High quality versus low quality threads
It is a common mistake for companies new to embroidery to cut costs by buying the cheapest threads available without considering the reasons behind any price differences. Buying a cheaper thread will often mean you will receive a lower quality product.
There are many attributes that would be expected of a high quality thread, top of the list would be its strength. A strong thread will result in fewer breakages particularly when running a machine at high speed. A thread with a high tensile strength will also be more forgiving to errors in thread tensioning, a common issue for many embroiderers. Both of these qualities can result in less machine downtime. Consistent quality from the first to the last metre ensures a perfect and even embroidery and maximises the stitch count achieved from each cone. If you also consider how resistant a thread is to abrasion and tearing, how much it might fray, consistency of the dying process etc. you can appreciate the many factors involved when choosing between a high quality thread and a lower quality one.
What does this mean?
Budget threads really can be a false economy. If you consider the typical costs involved with a 5000m cone that yields approximately one million stitches:
With a budget rayon thread the cost would be £0.05 per 10,000 stitch design.
With Sulky Rayon thread the cost would be £0.0715 per 10,000 stitch design.
If you offset the saving of £0.02 per 10,000 stitch design against the potential thread breakages, re-threading time and overall machine downtime of using a low quality cheaper thread then the saving becomes negligible.
Producing a high quality Rayon thread
Rayon thread is made from viscose. The raw material needed for the production of viscose is cellulose pulp. The original material for the pulp production is wood.
If you take a closer look at Sulky Rayon thread, this is made exclusively from ENKA viscose from the world renowned ENKA plant in Germany. ENKA strictly controls every step of the process, from cultivating the right trees on plantations with optimal climatic and geologic conditions, to reprocessing only the highest quality cellulose fibers. It takes about 20 years until each individual tree has the inner structure and ripeness to meet ENKA’s high quality demands.
The real impact of using the best raw material to produce high quality viscose fibres is demonstrated in these cross section photos taken from an electron microscope.
The ENKA viscose has a regular, even, lapped structure which is vitally important for a fibre to show a true and consistent colour throughout. The refraction of the light and the even quality of the thread make the yarn brilliant and produces a shine that can only come from top quality viscose with constant solidity and evenness of dyeing.
Compare the ENKA viscose cross section photo with one taken from another viscose thread in the marketplace and you can clearly see the differing, uneven filaments and irregular outlines.
Environmental considerations
Sulky Rayon is also made exclusively with ENKA viscose because it is produced on environmentally-friendly plantations in accordance with the highest European health, safety and environmental standards.
So, when placing your next thread order, remember thread is a vital component of the embroidery process. The thread you choose can help determine whether machine production levels can be achieved. The embroidered product you stitch out will only ever be as good as the thread that you’ve used. Sulky Rayon is a high quality thread that can help you achieve cost effective and beautiful embroideries.
