How to make it
- Bring a colorAdd a photo of fabric, a painting or your garden, or paste a six-digit hex code from a design file or website.
- Tap the spotTouch the exact area on the photo. The picker averages a small patch of pixels around your tap so a single noisy pixel cannot mislead it.
- Compare and copyRead the five closest DMC numbers with their Delta E scores, copy the one you want, and confirm it against real thread.
Three ways to give it a color
The first is a picture. Add any photo, tap a point and the tool reads a five by five pixel patch around it, averages those pixels and treats the result as your target. Averaging matters because a camera image is full of grain, and the single pixel under your finger may be a speck of highlight or shadow.
The second is a hex code: six digits like 4a7c59, with or without the hash sign, from a brand guide, a digital drawing or a paint app. The third is the color wheel button, which opens your device's own picker for when you just want to explore what floss sits near a shade you have in mind.
Reading the match scores
Each suggestion shows a Delta E figure, a standard measure of how different two colors look to the human eye; this tool uses the CIEDE2000 version. Zero means identical. The picker turns the number into words so you don't have to memorize thresholds.
Treat the words as a guide to where a thread can go. A very close match can fill a large area without anyone noticing. A close one is safe for most motifs. A noticeable one works for small details or when nothing better exists, and a far one means DMC has no real equivalent: pick the shade that keeps the light and dark balance of your design, because value matters more than hue.
| Delta E | Shown as | What it usually means in stitching |
|---|---|---|
| under 2 | very close | Hard to tell apart side by side; fine for backgrounds |
| 2 to under 5 | close | Visible next to each other, invisible in a motif |
| 5 to under 10 | noticeable | A different shade; OK for small details |
| 10 or more | far | No real equivalent in the range; choose by lightness |
Why a photo can fool you, and how to help it
A photo records light, not dye. Warm indoor bulbs push everything toward yellow, shade turns whites blue, and phone cameras brighten and saturate on their own. The picker matches the color in the file exactly, so a sofa photographed under a lamp will be matched as a more orange fabric than it really is.
For better results, photograph the object in daylight near a window without direct sun, avoid flash, and include something white in the frame so you can see whether the picture leans warm or cool. Tap a flat, evenly lit part of the surface rather than an edge or a fold. If the suggestions come back as noticeable or far, the lighting is often the reason, not the thread range.
Screens and real floss
The swatches next to each match are drawn from published hex values for DMC colors and then shown by your screen, so both ends of the comparison are approximate. Glossy cotton also looks lighter or darker depending on the angle of the light. Use the suggestions to shortlist two or three numbers, then hold the real skeins against the object, or check a physical DMC color card, before buying a whole palette.
Privacy
The photo is opened inside your browser, scaled down for display and read on your own device. Nothing is uploaded and there is no account, so you can match colors from family pictures without sending them anywhere.
Everyday uses for a floss matcher
Stitchers reach for a picker in more situations than you might expect. Matching a kit thread that ran out mid-project, when the label is lost and only a few stitches remain to photograph. Choosing floss that suits a nursery's paint color or a wedding palette given as hex codes by a designer. Picking a sky color from a holiday photo for a hand-drawn landscape. Finding a thread to repair a vintage piece whose original colors are long discontinued.
In each case the same habit pays off: shortlist from the screen, decide with real thread. Bring two or three of the suggested numbers to the shop, or pull them from your stash, and lay them on the actual object near a window. The suggestion that reads correctly in daylight is the one to buy, even if it was not first on the list.
When you need a whole palette
Picking one color at a time suits matching a fabric, a wedding color or a single repair. To turn a whole picture into a stitchable design, the photo to cross stitch maker does this matching for every stitch at once and keeps small, distinct areas in their own thread. To browse rather than match, open the DMC color chart and filter by family. Fuse beads have their own palettes on the bead color charts.
Questions
How do I find the DMC color from a picture?
Add the picture, then tap the area whose color you want. The picker averages the pixels around your tap and lists the five closest DMC threads with their numbers and names. Choose the top result if it says very close or close, then compare the real skein with the object, since photos and screens both shift colors.
Can I convert a hex code to DMC floss?
Yes. Type the six-digit code in the hex field, with or without the hash sign, and press Enter or move out of the box. The results show the nearest DMC numbers and how close each one is. RGB values from a design program can be converted to hex in that program first.
Why doesn't the match look right on my screen?
Screens differ in brightness and color, the floss swatches are approximations, and real thread is shiny, so it never looks exactly like a flat patch of color. If the match score says very close, trust the number more than the swatch, and confirm with a physical color card or the skein itself in daylight.
What does a Delta E of 3 mean?
It falls in the close band. Placed side by side as large blocks, you would probably see the difference; used inside a stitched motif, almost no one would. Values under 2 are very close, and values of 10 or more mean the range has no real equivalent for that color.
Is my photo uploaded anywhere?
No. The image is read and measured in your browser and never leaves your device. There is no sign-up and nothing is stored on a server, so closing the tab removes the picture from the page. That also means the tool keeps working without a connection once the page has loaded.
Can it match colors to Anchor or other thread brands?
This picker matches to DMC only. Many patterns and kits use DMC numbers, so having the DMC number is often the easiest way to shop or to look up a conversion chart for another brand afterward. Once you have the DMC number, the DMC chart also shows its five nearest DMC neighbors if your shop is out of it.
Can I pick several colors from one photo?
Yes. After the photo is loaded, tap as many spots as you like; each tap replaces the result list with matches for the new spot. Copy each number as you go into a note. For a complete palette from a picture, though, converting the whole image in the pattern maker is quicker and also counts stitches per color.