How to start a palette
The Palette Builder offers two build modes so you can work whichever way suits your project.
- From images — upload up to six reference photos (a holiday snap, a painting you love, a swatch of fabric) and hit Extract thread colours. The tool analyses the dominant colours and suggests the closest DMC or Anchor matches.
- Browse threads — scroll the full 456-shade DMC range or the 420-shade Anchor range and pick shades by hand using colour-family chips.
You can mix both modes in the same palette — start with an image extraction, then browse the range to add a highlight or swap a shade that is not quite right.
Adding and managing reference images
Upload JPG, PNG, or WEBP files. A counter shows “0 of 6 images” so you always know how many slots remain. Once your images are pinned, tap Extract thread colours to pull the dominant shades.
Use the brand selector to choose DMC, Anchor, or Best Match (searches both ranges and returns whichever shade is closest). You can also set a cover image — the first image in the list becomes the thumbnail shown in your My Palettes overview.
Browsing the full thread range manually
Choose Browse threads when creating a new palette to open the full DMC or Anchor catalogue. Colour-family chips — White, Pink, Red, Purple, Blue, Green, Yellow, Orange, Brown, Beige, Grey, Black, and Skin — let you jump straight to the section you need. Click a thread to add it to your palette; click again to remove it.
Manual browsing is especially useful when you want to:
- Add a specific highlight shade the extraction missed.
- Build a tonal range — light, medium, and dark versions of the same hue.
- Compare two candidate shades side by side before committing.
Saving, printing, and sending to your stash
Once you are happy with your palette you have several options:
- Copy shopping list — copies every thread code to your clipboard so you can paste it into a notes app or take it to the shop.
- Print with images — generates a printable view with colour swatches and thread codes.
- Add palette to Stash — marks every thread in the palette as owned in My Stash. Use this after you have bought the threads.
Hit Save at any time to store a named palette. Palettes are kept in your browser’s local storage so you can close the tab and come back later. Keep in mind that clearing your browser cache or cookies may remove saved palettes — use Copy shopping list or Print with images to keep a backup.
Starter palettes
Not sure where to begin? The homepage features four curated starter palettes you can load straight into the Palette Builder and adapt to your own project:
- Cottage Roses — soft pinks, warm greens, and cream. All DMC.
- Winter Harbour — steely blues, slate grey, and off-white. All DMC.
- Mid-Century Garden — mustard, teal, terracotta, and olive. All DMC.
- Wedding Sampler — blush, champagne, sage, and ivory. All DMC.
Each starter palette is a jumping-off point — add, remove, or swap shades to make it yours. For more ideas on combining colours effectively, read the colour theory guide.
Palette Builder or Colour Matcher?
| Palette Builder | Colour Matcher | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Planning a whole project | Finding the closest match from one photo fast |
| Input | Up to 6 images + manual browsing | One image |
| Zone map | No | Yes |
| Skein estimate | No | Yes |
| Save and return | Yes — named palettes | Export only |
| Manual thread editing | Yes — full add/remove | Via grouping controls |
Use the Colour Matcher when you have a single photo and need the closest thread match right now. Use the Palette Builder when you are in the planning stage — collecting inspiration from multiple sources, comparing shades side by side, and building a curated thread list you can save, revisit, and refine over time.