Most hand embroidery is done in six-strand cotton because it can be split to any weight and comes in about 500 colours. The other threads in the thread types database are chosen for a look the cotton cannot give: the round bead of pearl cotton, the matte softness of wool, the shine of silk.
Strands and weight
Six-strand cotton is split and recombined, so one skein gives six different weights. As a rule of thumb:
| Strands | Looks like | Use for |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | a pencil line | fine detail, thread painting, whipping |
| 2 | a fine pen line | small lettering, outlines on light fabric, cross-stitch on 14 count |
| 3 | a marker line | general outlines, small satin-stitched shapes, leaves |
| 4 | a bold marker | chunky outlines, stems, fills on medium fabric |
| 6 | a cord | bold modern florals, French knots that stand up, denim and felt |
Pearl cotton is not split. Size 12 stitches like one and a half strands, 8 like two or three, 5 like four to six, and 3 like six strands doubled. Because a pearl thread is a single twisted cord, whipped and knotted stitches in pearl cotton sit higher and rounder than the same stitch in split floss.
Matching thread to stitch
Line stitches show every strand, so an even number of strands helps split stitch and a heavy thread helps chain stitch look like a braid. Satin stitch is smoothest in three or four strands laid carefully; six strands cover fast but the strands twist and show ridges unless they are stroked flat. French knots in six strands with one wrap are rounder than knots in two strands with three wraps. Long and short stitch shading is finest in one or two strands.
Matching thread to fabric
Fine thread on a coarse fabric sinks between the threads; heavy thread on a fine fabric distorts it. Linen and quilting cotton take one to four strands; osnaburg, felt and denim want four to six strands or pearl 5; crewel wool belongs on linen twill. The fabrics database gives a best-for note for each ground.
How much to buy
The thread length estimator turns an area of filling or a length of line into metres and skeins for a stitch and strand count. A skein is 8 m of six-strand thread, which is 24 m of two-strand thread or 16 m of three-strand thread, so a small hoop design of outlines in two strands usually needs one skein per colour, and a satin-stitched area of 20 cm² in three strands needs about two.