There are officially 500 different colors of DMC 117 Mouliné Spécial thread.

But…

That’s not the whole story. The US DMC website lists only 489, there are some region-specific “exclusive” threads, and there are Étoile, Coloris, Color Variations, Light Effects, and even some Special Embroidery threads available.
 
So let’s dive in and work out what’s going on, and how many threads you can collect.

So Why Does The US Site Only List 489 Threads?

The DMC US website allows you to buy 489 colors separately, but there are still 500 standard threads.
All DMC threads are made in the French factory and shipped around the world (which is the main reason DMC threads vary in price depending on where you live). For some reason, which I don’t know yet, DMC US gets individual threads for 489 of the colors. So while you can get the others in the US, you can’t buy them individually from the US site (although other retailers do sell them).
 
If you’re looking for the missing colors, you need to pick up 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 677, 734, 822 and 988. Sometimes you may also need to source 3856 too.

What About Those US Specific Threads?

These 16 threads are mostly considered as discontinued DMC threads, as they are hard to come by outside of the Americas, and they’re rarely used in patterns. However, they are officially still in production.
Many countries have stringent rules on what dyes can be used in manufacturing, however, in America, these rules are slightly more relaxed. In 2013 a new set of 16 threads was made, using dyes that can only be sold in America. Whilst these threads were never brought into the official range (due to them being hard to come by outside the states), you can still pick them up on the US DMC site, and some resellers across the world.
 
3773, 3880, 3881, 3882, 3883, 3884, 3885, 3886, 3887, 3888, 3889, 3890, 3891, 3892, 3893, 3894 & 3895

What About The Other 6 Stand Threads?

Now the official 500 colors are done, we now need to talk about the other 6 strand threads. Whilst there are 500 solid colors, there are other threads that offer you a slight variation in your stitches, which might be worth picking up.

Étoile Threads

The newest threads to be added to DMCs range, the Étoile thread range. These 35 threads (not to be confused with the “new 35 DMC threads” which are included in the 500) are like any other threads in the range, but they have a slight sparkle running through them. Great for adding a subtle touch to any work, they’re a great range to collect too.
 
(C)ECRU, (C)BLANC, C310, C318, C321, C415, C433, C436, C444, C471, C519, C550, C554, C600, C603, C666, C699, C725, C738, C740, C798, C814, C816, C820, C823, C840, C890, C900, C907, C915, C938, C972, C995, C3371 & C3799

Coloris

Another fairly new set of threads from DMC, the Coloris range is made up of threads with 4 distinct colors in each thread. Like some of the other variations threads which we’ll speak about in a minute, these threads are great for making more interesting solid color patterns. However, unlike the variations, they change to a very different color every 5cm, rather than a complementary color.
 
4500, 4501, 4502, 4503, 4504, 4505, 4506, 4507, 4508, 4509, 4510, 4511, 4512, 4513, 4514, 4515, 4516, 4517, 4518, 4519, 4520, 4521, 4522 & 4523

Color Variations

The color variations range is a series of color-changing threads with each color varying slightly giving a faded effect. There are 36 in total, however, there have been more in the past.
 
4015, 4020, 4025, 4030, 4040, 4045, 4050, 4060, 4065, 4070, 4075, 4077, 4080, 4090, 4100, 4110, 4120, 4124, 4126, 4128, 4130, 4140, 4145, 4150, 4160, 4170, 4180, 4190, 4200, 4210, 4215, 4220, 4230, 4235 & 4240

Variegated threads

The variegated range of threads, which can be hard to find if you’re trying to find them on the official DMC websites, are 18 threads similar in nature to the color variations series, but the change of colors is slower.
In the past DMC have made a lot of variegated threads discontinued, and the arrival of the new Coloris range has made many to suspect they made do the same to these soon too.
 
48, 51, 52, 53, 67, 69, 90, 92, 93, 94, 99, 105, 106, 107, 111, 115, 121 & 125

Light Effects

The final set of 6 strands threads by DMC is the Light Effects range. This includes all their metallic, pearl, neon and glow-in-the-dark threads.
 
E5200, E130, E135, E155, E168, E211, E301, E310, E316, E317, E321, E334, E415, E436, E677, E699, E703, E718, E746, E747, E815, E818, E825, E898, E966, E967, E3685, E3747, E3821, E3837, E3843, E3849, E3852, E980, E990, E940, 5282 & 5283

Are There Any Other Threads?

Whilst those are the standard 6 strand threads cross stitchers can use, there are other 6 strand threads from different DMC ranges that can be used as well.

Satin Threads

The first range is DMCs satin range. Unlike its standard cotton 500, the satin range is made up of rayon fibers (shiny wool) but acts exactly like normal DMC thread. Most people forget these threads, and they really shouldn’t as not only is a project with purely these threads a delight to behold (especially a higher count project) but they are a great swap in for backstitching threads.
 
S5200, S211, S307, S310, S321, S326, S336, S351, S352, S367, S414, S415, S434, S469, S471, S472, S501, S504, S550, S552, S553, S601, S602, S606, S666, S676, S700, S702, S712, S726, S738, S739, S741, S744, S745, S762, S776, S797, S798, S799, S800, S818, S820, S841, S898, S899, S909, S915, S931, S932, S943, S959, S964, S976, S991, S995, S3371, S3607, S3685 & S3820

Diamant Threads

Somewhat different from the others on this list the Diamant range is single strand, but they’re the same as a single strand of the standard cotton. Diamant threads are a great DMC metallics alternative, as they’re softer and in my opinion don’t have anywhere near the same issues as the DMC metallics range.
 
D5200, D140, D168, D225, D301, D310, D316, D317, D321, D415, D699, D898, D3821 & D3852

Discontinued Threads

There are also a whole bunch of discontinued threads. There are so many here, from all types of ranges, such as metallics, variations and variegated, but you can still get your hands on good quality second-hand embroidery threads that include these.

So How Many Threads Can You Collect?

In total, you can get your hands on 667 different DMC 500 six strand threads.
 
500 solid colors, 16 region-specific colors, 35 Étoile threads, 24 Coloris threads, 36 Color Variations, 18 Variegated threads & 38 Light Effect threads.
 
You can also get your hands on 60 satin six strand threads, 14 diamant threads and 73 discontuined threads.

Looking for how to track your threads?

We have a great free spreadsheet you can use!