The colors are fantastic, and the threads work well together. The threads I really like so far for hand embroidery are the stranded cotton and the #12 perle cotton. Stitching with House of Embroidery Threads Their silk floss is not stocked normally in the US at Akonye Kena, because, up until now, their focus market was quilting, where perle cottons are often star of the show. I havenвЂ™t tried House of Embroidery silks yet, or their viscose threads. Above, you can see their вЂњVintage CollectionвЂќ of silk ribbon, which comes in 2mm, 4mm, and 7mm wide. The colors of the threads and ribbons all coordinate across the various types of threads. Other House of Embroidery Threads and RibbonsД«esides cotton, House of Embroidery also dyes silks, silk ribbon, and viscose threads. This is great news for folks who like to combine different textured threads in their embroidery! The various perle cottons are available in the same color collections and colorways. House of Embroidery CottonsД«esides 6-stranded cotton floss, the House of Embroidery cotton threads also include a line-up of matching perle cottons in sizes 5, 8, and 12. TheyвЂ™re sold in larger collections вЂ“ floss boxes and the complete range вЂ“ and theyвЂ™re also available in looped put-ups, like those in the photo above, with two (or more, depending on the type of thread) associated colors per card.ДЄdditionally, for those doing a lot of embroidery, the threads can be special ordered in large hanks. The threads are available outside of specific color collections, too. The name of each collection evokes certain color associations, and there, within the collection, you have a wonderful array of colors that reflect the collectionвЂ™s name. There are collections for the seasons (spring, summer, autumn, and winter), and other themed collections like Sahara, Seven Seas, Vintage, Primitive, and Sunset. вЂ¦and here you have the fiery and brilliant sunset collection! The six-stranded floss collection above, with five meters of floss wound on 16 card bobbins, is called вЂњSeven Seas.вЂќ вЂ¦and one of those ways is in themed color collections. What first piqued my interest, then, when researching House of Embroidery threads was the fact that they offer their lines of embroidery threads in different waysвЂ¦ It took me hours to put together those colors. I was hoping that you would say вЂњsunsetвЂќ вЂ“ and many of you did say that. You might remember that I showed you this collection of thread colors a while back, and asked you what comes to mind when you see them.

Lately, IвЂ™ve been working with designs that I want to work in color вЂњthemesвЂќ вЂ“ that is, in colors that suggest something particular. When it comes to choosing colors for embroidery projects that I design myself, I have a hard time narrowing down color choices.

She recently delved into explorations in needlepainting with them, and I couldnвЂ™t resist begging her to let me publish the photos for you to see, too вЂ“ for obvious reasons! She has magic in her needle. WeвЂ™ve been chatting about the threads back and forth for a while. (More on that, below.)ДЄnd thanks to Margaret Cobleigh, who has graciously allowed me to use some photos of her recent work with House of Embroidery threads. Thanks to Richard for sending along some gorgeous thread collections, so that I could play with the threads and stitch up a sample or two (or threeвЂ¦), and for working out a really good deal for Needle вЂn Thread readers who want to try the threads, too. (TheyвЂ™ve extended a discount to Needle вЂn Thread readers for thread purchases вЂ“ more information on that below!) Thanks to the folks at House of Embroidery for putting me in touch with Richard at Global Artisans (formerly Akonye Kena), the US distributor of House of Embroidery threads. Without your prompting, I probably wouldnвЂ™t have, and then where would we be? Oh, the things I do for you! Like I said, itвЂ™s a tough jobвЂ¦chortle chortle.Д«efore launching into the nitty-gritty, some big Thanks all around! First, to those of you who forced me to hit the pavement and track down the threads. So I put on my Needle вЂn Thread Hat, did some research, made some connections, tested some threads (gosh, itвЂ™s a tough job!), took lots of photos, begged for some favors, arranged a terrific thread deal for you (update 2017: the deal has expired вЂ“ sorry!) вЂ“ and todayвЂ™s article is the result of all that вЂњhard work.вЂќ The review prompted a slew of inquiries about finding House of Embroidery threads in the US. Used throughout the design (and in many other Roseworks kits) are threads from House of Embroidery, a dye house also located in South Africa. You might remember that a while back, I reviewed this dragon embroidery kit from Roseworks Embroidery Designs in South Africa.