DMC Floss now what???

Sorry if I've responded twice, I can't get my head around how this thing works.

Achor is owned by Coats Crafts who are an intirely separate company. I would have thought if there isn't a solution for DMC that they would be considering looking at the threads business. The DMC brand is enormous, particularly for threads, and something worth having. From what I have heard there is little difference in the quality between Anchor and DMC stranded cotton and they have a similar size range, however, DMC must certainly have the lion's share of the market, particularly if you consider worldwide sales.

I don't know that worldwide DMC has a bigger share. Just depends on where you are. I believe that there is some entity which has ownership in both corporations, but that's just like having stock in 2 different automotive brands.

IIRC Anchor is manufactured in Germany. Which doesn't mean that if DMC went out they wouldn't buy some factories or equipment, but who knows. Coats has a lot of other yarn and thread brands, around the world.

floss, well, there is some stuff being done in Romania - the Valdanifloss, and Presencia which is from a company in Spain.http://www.presenciausa.com/Just guessing, but I'd think the French courts will allow the restructuring,rather than the immediate loss of 1000 jobs. But, then again, who knows. ellice

Amazingling Coats Crafts owns 20% of DMC but due to the competitive nature of the business I understand has no involvement. However, getting discussions going I guess whould be easier, it probably depends on how much cash DMC needs to keep going.

French works councils ensure that reduancy packages are enormous, so I'd expect that even 200 cuts will cost a small fortune. I got the impression that the immediate issue was operational cash however, so they'd need an injection from somewhere.

Well, I might be stepping on a land mine here, but it seems to me it's only important if you use charts and stitch by color number. I dunno. Maybe it would force people to take chances and use colors using their brain, or at least a color chart. Dora I just have to get at least one of those ads off the front page of Google. They're really starting to bug me.

I think even more people would just not stitch. I am perfectly happy, most of the time, to let the designers pick the colors. I am so not going to mess with, say, a Silver Lining floral. The shading are just too subtle for me to want to alter them. Personally, I find a lot of the appeal in xs, which is mainly what I do, is in the execution of the design. Picking colors is absolutely not my strong point. But if you love to do it, go for it! There is plenty of room for everyone from literalists, to those who do every bit of a design themselves.

JMHO, Sara in Delaware

DMC's dominance is due to how cheap a skein of thread is. When a designer calls for a speciality thread, it increases the cost of the project dramatically.

Show of hands -- when doing a project, how many of you

use the speciality threads the designer suggests?

ignore the speciality threads and use the suggested DMC equivalents?

I use the specialty threads...it adds to the fun, and enhances the stash with the excess on the skein.

There are four exceptions...the Elizabeth Designs Seasons charts. I stitched the interior part of the design with DMC, but did use the Silk'n'colors for the surrounding leaves. In retrospect, I wish I had stitched all of then totally with silks, but I was new to silks then!

Gillian

It depends on how enamored I am of the model.

If I want the finished product to look just like the cover picture, I'll use the specialty thread.

However, that's rare, especially on projects that call for specialty threads. I often change things, and I'll use a different specialty thread if I have one in my stash already rather than buying the exact one called for in the project.

jenn

-- Jenn Ridley : snipped-for-privacy@gmail.com WIP: Poppies (Art-Stitch), two knitted tops, Oriental Butterfly Most recently Finished: Floral Sampler, Insect Sampler

I always use the DMC alternative! I have to add that here in Oz, DMC threads (and any others) are *not* cheap. Well, not that cheap, at least: about a dollar a skein or so. Specialty threads like silks etc can be upwards of $10AUS a skein so I wouldn't tend to use them.

Since I most like to stitch samplers, I can't see the sense in spending $$$ for a skein of expensive silk just to stitch one row of a sampler in which you'd never know the thread was silk unless someone specifically told you it was. I'll generally substitute the closest cheaper alternative, often a locally hand-dyed cotton. I'd have a shot at producing my own hand-dyes if I were a bit more interested...

I *would* spend the $$$ for expensive threads for something large that required extensive areas done in the specialty stuff. A piece of stumpwork that was destined to be an heirloom might qualify for that. Now I come to think of it, I don't really believe XS lends itself all that well to the grander threads. I mean, you don't really get to see the effect of sheen, lustre etc in XS as opposed to, say, satin stitch, do you? I dunno... that's just what I think. This is an interesting thread - it's going to be fun seeing what others think! Thanks for starting it, anne! ;-D

Actually, I very often substitute for DMC. I love using GAST with their subtle variations. When I want more dramatic changes I use WDW. I've used silks in a number of pieces that call for DMC.

MargW

I love using the specialty threads, but they're not all that easy to get here. You usually have to order them, and then wait for them, and that's the hard part if you want to get going on a project. I tend to use DMC for the most part, and order specialty threads for a specific project I have in mind, like my brother's wedding sampler, for which I'm using silk wool and cottons and variegated thread. Speaking of which, I also need to find a Jewish calendar online that's written in the English alphabet. Does anyone know where I might find one? Thanks!

Louisa

My answer--yes to both. I guess I should add sometimes one and sometimes the other.

Lucille

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Show of hands -- when doing a project, how many of you

use the speciality threads the designer suggests?

ignore the speciality threads and use the suggested DMC equivalents?

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I'd LIKE to use more DMC, but most of the stuff I find I want to do calls for specialty threads, especially some of the counted canvaswork. Sometimes ridiculously expensive and hard to find speciality stuff. Thank goodness I have to order it, or we'd be in the poor house!

Linda

You know, if you manage to keep the total cost of the merchandise you are buying to under 200,- NOK, you don't have to pay duty fees.

Most of the time, I find something I have on hand (maybe DMC, maybe a specialty thread I bought because I loved it, maybe some leftover specialty thread that I bought for a previous project).

There are times when the specialty fiber is what drew me to the piece.

Same here - completely depends on whether I have specialty fibre already, whether I want to spend the $$$ on a particular design, and whether I'm patient enough to wait until after a trip to the LNS. For a small piece, like an ornament, I almost always use DMC equivalent due to expense...unless it's one I'm going to make several of, in order to use up most of the skein I've purchased! And I also take into account whether the impact on the particular design is significant enough to justify added expense.

Sue

I've found that a lot of places that have the things I might purchase have minimum orders that they'll accept.

The USD/NOK currency fluctuations have been a blessing and a curse lately. As an example, I recently was sent some computer-related goods as a gift from my dad, valued at less than 1000 NOK. By the time they arrived, two weeks later...we ended up getting hit with a hefty duty fee because the currency exchange had shifted.

The next time we travel to the US and visit my family, we're going to end up carrying a million suitcases on the way back to Norway. I've got a small mountain of purchases that have accumulated at both parents' houses.

Extra luggage charges beats paying duty every damn time... Becky A.