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Stitch Toolbox

Free tool

Thread colour converter

Pick a colour, paste a hex code, or drop a stitch file to match every block. Distances are CIEDE2000 on manufacturer RGB values, so treat anything under ΔE 2.3 as the same colour and check a physical card for the rest.

About this tool

How matching works

Every chart is the manufacturer's published colour list as RGB approximations, the same data Ink/Stitch ships. Colours are converted to CIELAB and compared with CIEDE2000, the perceptual distance formula that weights lightness, chroma and hue the way people see them, rather than plain RGB distance, which ranks bright greens and dark reds badly. The three closest threads are shown with the distance, so a colour with no good match is visible as such instead of being silently rounded.

Charts

Isacord Polyester, Madeira Polyneon and Madeira Rayon, Sulky Rayon and Sulky Polyester, Robison-Anton Polyester, Floriani Polyester, Hemingworth, Marathon Polyester, Gütermann Creativ Dekor, Coats Sylko, Brother Embroidery and Janome. The last two are the palettes PES and JEF files store, so dropping one of those files shows what the machine screen calls each colour and what to buy in your brand.

Limits

  • Chart RGB values are approximations, not spectrophotometer readings. Two charts can disagree by a few ΔE on the same thread; check a physical card for a customer's brand colour.
  • DST and EXP files carry no colours, so there is nothing to match; use the colour sheet the design came with.

How to use it

  1. 1

    Give it a colour

    Type a thread number and brand, pick a colour, paste a hex code, or drop a stitch file to match every block in it.

  2. 2

    Pick the brands you stock

    Results are shown for the brands you select; the closeness of each match is rated so you know when to check the cone.

  3. 3

    Read the distance

    ΔE under 1 is indistinguishable, under 2.3 very close, under 5 close, under 10 noticeable side by side.

  4. 4

    Print or copy

    Copy the list into a colour sheet, or open the full conversion tables linked below.

Questions

How accurate is the match?

Chart RGB values are the manufacturers' screen approximations, not spectrophotometer readings. ΔE under 2.3 is indistinguishable on screen; under 5 is close; above 10 is a different colour. Sheen and thread weight also change how a colour reads on fabric.

Which charts are included?

Isacord Polyester, Madeira Polyneon and Rayon, Sulky Rayon and Polyester, Robison-Anton Polyester, Floriani Polyester, Hemingworth, Marathon Polyester, Gütermann Creativ Dekor, Coats Sylko, Brother Embroidery and Janome, via the Ink/Stitch palette files.

Can I convert Isacord to Madeira numbers?

Yes: choose the source brand, type the catalogue number, and pick the target brand. The result lists the three closest threads with their ΔE.

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