Free tool
Image to DMC palette
Choose a photo to see its main colors as DMC floss numbers. Use it to pull a palette from a picture you love, or to plan the threads for your own design.
The colors are worked out in your browser. Your photo is not uploaded.
Looking for one specific color? The hex to DMC converter finds the closest floss to any hex code. Once your design is charted, the floss calculator tells you how many skeins to buy.
Frequently asked
- How does it pick the colors?
- It samples the photo's pixels and sorts them into the number of groups you choose, so similar shades end up together (k-means clustering, in the CIELAB color space). The average color of each group is then matched to the closest of the 489 solid DMC Mouliné colors.
- Why did I get fewer colors than I asked for?
- When two of the photo's colors match the same floss, they're merged into one entry, so the list can come out shorter than the number on the slider. It's also shorter when the photo has fewer distinct colors than that.
- What do the percentages mean?
- Roughly how much of the photo each floss covers. They're a quick guide to which colors you'll use the most of. To work out skeins, chart the design first, then put each color's stitch count into the floss calculator.
- Is my photo uploaded?
- No. The colors are worked out in your browser and the photo never leaves your device.
- Will the floss look like the colors on screen?
- Close, but not exactly. The hex values for floss are approximations of the dyed thread, and screens show color differently. For color-critical work, check the list against a physical DMC shade card.