How to organize embroidery floss
Updated November 1, 2026 · 2 min read
Floss storage has one job: you can find the number, and the skein is not a knot. Everything else is furniture. A biscuit tin with labelled bobbins beats a drawer of loose skeins.
- 1
Pull from the labelled end
A DMC skein has a loose end by the larger label. Pull that end. The other end cinches the whole skein into a knot. Cut the length you need and leave the rest in the paper bands until you are ready to wind it.
- 2
Label the bobbin with the number before you wind
Write 310, not “black.” Write B5200, not “white.” Two browns and two reds will not be identifiable next year. Wind evenly so the thread comes off without cutting into the layers.
Number first, then wind. Stick the paper band in the box if you like the official name. - 3
Sort by number, not by a rainbow you invent
DMC numbers are not in hue order. Sorting the box by number matches the way legends are written and the way the colour chart is sorted. A rough hue sort is fine on a project ring of ten colours. It is a poor system for 200 bobbins.
- 4
Keep a project bag separate from the stash
Pull the colours for this chart onto a ring or into a box, with the legend. Put them back when the piece is finished. Digging through the whole stash every evening is how numbers go back in the wrong slot.
- 5
Store dye lots with the project
If you bought three skeins of a sky, keep them with that project until it is done. Returning one to the general box and buying a replacement later is how a shaded sky gets a stripe.
- 6
Keep light and moths off the cotton
Direct sun fades cotton even when the brand is fade-resistant. A closed box is enough for a house stash. Add a cedar block if you store wool or if moths are a local fact. Do not store floss in a bathroom.
Drops, bobbins, and original skeins
Bobbins are compact and easy to label. Drops (the floss braided into itself) are faster to wind poorly and fine when done neatly. Leaving special colours in the original skein, with the number bands, is legitimate. Pick one system so your hands know where the end is.
Stitch leftovers
A leftover shorter than your forearm is a scrap, not a bobbin. Keep scraps only for the colour you are still stitching. The rest become knots.
Sources
- 10 essential things to know before starting cross stitch — Embroiderers’ Guild of America
- DMC Mouliné Spécial: six strands, 8.7 yards, colourfast — DMC
- DMC general FAQ: colourfast thread — DMC
Look up the number before you wind the wrong one
The chart lists the solid DMC colours PixVix matches, with names and Anchor numbers.
Open the DMC chartQuestions
- Should I wind the whole skein at once?
- Yes, if you use bobbins. A half-wound skein plus a bobbin is two places to lose the number.
- How do I stop the bobbin unwinding in the box?
- Tuck the end under one wrap, or use a bobbin with a slit. A rubber band around every bobbin gums the cotton over time.
- Can I store different brands together?
- Only if every bobbin says the brand and the number. “310” is not an Anchor number. Mixing them unlabeled is how a blend appears by accident.
- What about metallic thread?
- Keep it in the packet. Bobbin edges snag metal. It also does not follow the cotton wash rules.