Best Hand Embroidery Thread: Brands, Types & Guide

If you love to make embroideries and want to find the best hand embroidery thread for your projects, then this is the best article for you.

Finding the best thread for embroidery requires more thought and focus because it reflects the level of your art. Perfect color shades are required to make your imagination a reality. In this article, we’ll go over the best brands, types of thread, and things to think about before purchasing hand embroidery thread, so let’s get started.

Best Brands of Hand Embroidery Threads World Wide: Top 3 Picks by HES

Here are some of the best brands you should seek while choosing a good thread for machine and hand embroidery.

DMC

DMC is a French brand and undoubtedly one of the most popular and trusted needlework thread manufacturers. They have been producing all types of hand embroidery threads with a specific sheen and vivid colors for over 270 years.

They claim their thread to be entirely made of double-mercerized Egyptian cotton to improve sheen, softness, and durability. Resultantly, these threads are of the highest grade because they are long-staple cotton.

Some of the threads available from DMC are listed below.

• Six-strand embroidery floss
• Pearl cotton
• Diamant colors
• Floch
• Satin Floss
• Etoile embroidery thread
• Matte cotton 
• Metallic thread

Anchor

Anchor is DMC’s counterpart, with a 250-year history of producing high-quality embroidery thread worldwide.

Their flosses are also double mercerized with 100 percent cotton, resulting in vibrant colors, durability, and long-lasting performance.

The best thing I like about Anchor is that they make all their threads without using hazardous chemicals.

Some of the cotton varieties they introduced are listed below.

• Stranded cotton
• Pearl cotton
• Tapisserie wool
• Merritt
• Metallic
• Lame

Kreinik

Kreinik is another good brand of hand embroidery thread that has offered a wide range of flosses for nearly 50 years. They produce nearly all threads, but I found their metallic and silk threads exceptionally good.

Fashion designers use Kreinik silk and metallic threads from well-known TV production houses. Working with their silk hand embroidery thread is joyful for professional fiber artists because of its high quality and shine. Their thread has a clean finish with durability that does not fade easily and does not bleed when washed.

These are some of the options available.

• Silk Bella
• Silk Mori skeins (2.5m / 5m)
• Silk couching thread
• Iron on thread
• Blending Filament
• Ombre
• Metallic Cord
• Braids

Top 5 Best Hand Embroidery Threads: Types and Recommendations

We chose 5 types of hand embroidery threads that are commonly used worldwide, along with our recommendations for the best hand embroidery threads.

Stranded Cotton or Embroidery Floss

This is the most popular hand embroidery thread, also known as ‘embroidery floss.’ People here in the United States cross stitch with stranded embroidery cotton thread, which produces an excellent result, whether it is simple or complex embroidery.

This comprises six strands that can be utilized together or individually to provide a clean stitch in more complex projects. It enables you to work with various fabric materials that produce astonishing results.

You can separate thread strands for needle painting projects, cross-stitching, and needlepoint works based on the requirements of your embroidery design.

IMAGE	PRODUCTS	PRICE
#1 Embroidery Floss	DMC Embroidery Floss   Features: 36 pieces of 6-strand 100% high-quality mercerized cotton embroidery floss. Total Length: 313 yards. Rating: ★★★★★	Check on AmazonRead Full Review
#2 Embroidery Floss	LA PEON Embroidery Floss   Features: 50 pieces of 6-strand 100% high-quality mercerized cotton embroidery floss. Total Length: 425 yards. Rating: ★★★★★	Check on AmazonRead Full Review

Regarding brands, DMC and LE PAON are clearly the best hand embroidery thread brands producing reliable quality 6-stranded cotton thread available worldwide. While DMC is higher in quality, LE PAON offers better value for an economical price.

Pearl Cotton or Perle Cotton

Perle cotton is available in a variety of thicknesses and weights. It is generally a little thicker than a single strand of 6-stranded floss.

Perle Cotton is a single-stranded floss with two twisted fibers. But keep in mind that separating the fibers will render them useless.

Perle cotton comes in various weights and thicknesses to suit any embroidery project.
It creates a professional appearance with a perfect sheen and durability for various embroidery projects such as redwork, Hardanger, and cross-stitching.

In terms of pricing, while many brands offer Perle cotton, DMC guaranteed quality with some of the largest color variations at a competitive price leads the market, whereas LE PAON offers a more economical option.

IMAGE	PRODUCTS	PRICE
#1 Pearl Cotton	DMC Pearl Cotton Ball   Features: 1 pearl cotton ball of a single strand of (size 8) 100% high-quality double-mercerized cotton. Total Length: 95 Yards. Rating: ★★★★★	Check on AmazonRead Full Review
#2 Pearl Cotton	LA PEON Pearl Cotton Ball   Features: 15 pearl cotton balls of 2 strands (size 5) of 100% high-quality mercerized cotton. Total Length: 1500 Yards. Rating: ★★★★★	Check on AmazonRead Full Review

Metallic Thread

“Gold Work” is a type of embroidery based entirely on this metallic hand embroidery thread. Although there are many other metallic threads, pure metallic thread is commonly used in gold work.

Common metallic threads include passing thread, braids, crinkle, cord, bullion, and tambour threads.
This unique thread is made by twisting a high-quality foil around a sturdy core. This texture makes it a strong, smooth, and long-lasting thread for adding bright, fancy embroidery work to finish a project on a high note.

All metallic thread shades are based on metal colors. Silver, copper, bright gold, black gold, and many other metal colors are available in the market to produce such a shiny embroidered design for your project.

IMAGE	PRODUCTS	PRICE
#1 Metallic Thread	DMC Metallic Thread   Features: 38 yards of 100% polyester metallic embroidery thread. Rating: ★★★★★	Check on AmazonRead Full Review

Silk Threads

Silk threads have a distinct sheen and brightness that will help you finish your embroidery project on a high note. Silk threads’ primary function is to provide gleaming, high-quality designs.

I usually couch my designs with silk threads made with metallic threads. Although silk threads add a gleaming beauty to the art, there is a drawback to using silk floss. They are not particularly strong threads, and fading can occur after washing some of my projects.

IMAGE	PRODUCTS	PRICE
#1 Best Over All	Original Chine Silk   Features: 10 bunch of 1100% Mulberry Silk Floss Total Length: 1200 yards Rating: ★★★★★	Check on AmazonRead Full Review

Variegated Threads

Talking about the best hand embroidery thread, the variegated thread is a one-of-a-kind thread that changes shade after a particular time. It is made of different colored fibers twisted together to create a multi-shade thread. Working with variegated thread is fun because it allows you to create different color combinations for the same skin.

Threads with different shades are available in rayon, cotton, and silk. Using this thread in my long projects adds more appeal to the final look with color variations. Using it productively, you can add variety to your large projects and take your art to the next level.

IMAGE	PRODUCTS	PRICE
#1 Best Over All	DMC Variegated Embroidery Floss   Features: 36 pieces of double mercerized 100% cotton 6-strand variegated embroidery floss. Total Length: 313 yards Rating: ★★★★★	Check on AmazonRead Full Review

Guide for Selection

Choosing the best thread for hand embroidery for your stitching hobby is difficult when you are new to the industry. There are various kinds of floss for diverse types of embroidery. Before diving into the world of hand embroidery, gathering some information about the best thread to use is necessary. Working with hands in embroidered projects allows me to present some factors to consider when choosing the best hand embroidery thread. Let’s take a look.

Durability

Durability is important in all jobs, but embroidery requires extra care because it is frequently exposed to the sun, water, harsh weather, and washing. The thread must be colorfast enough to remain bright for an extended period. Similarly, it would be best to inspect the thread strands, which must be strong enough to withstand appropriate pressure. Individual strands of cheaper threads are made from thin fibers. It would be best if you examined the strands’ thickness and strangeness.

Color Reliability

Before selecting the best thread for hand embroidery, it is vital to look at it. Some low-budget or local company threads start to fade after some washes. And some even start to bleed and drop their colors on the fabric. You should check customer reviews on their website to recognize their reliability before selecting thread for hand embroidery.

Finishing

Before selecting the best threads for hand embroidery, you should ensure the texture and finishing of the thread. The thread must be soft and shiny enough to produce a smooth and high-quality embroidered result.

Color Range

Brands like DMC and Anchors have a wide range of color shades that gives you variety in your professional work. Before selecting the best thread for hand embroidery, you must understand the importance of color choice before starting. Limited color stock restricts you from producing a less effective artifact. When creating a scenic design, you must have a lot of color options to finish the work.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Final Verdict

Selecting the best thread for hand embroidery is difficult when you don’t know much about hand embroidery threads, and many brands are available in the market. However, if you don’t have much experience in hand embroidery threads, don’t go for the silk or metallic embroidered floss threads, as they are not easy to work with for the new stitchers.

Start your skills with cotton for just couching, then gradually go for other options. Talking about brands, DMC and LE PAON are standout performers in the industry as they have been trusted for a long time and provide brilliant shades of up to 480 colors.