Silk Comparison

I wanted to chat a bit about silk threads. I currently carry Planet Earth Fibers 6 ply silk thread in my shop. I adore this thread. The colors are gorgeous, it's easily divisible, and has a wonderful glide through fabric.

There's another popular silk thread I am aware of - Au Ver A Soie's Soie d'Alger. I sought some out at a local shop after seeing it referenced both online and in some embroidery patterns I was exploring. It's lovely! It's comprised of 7 plies and has a lovely sheen - perhaps even a tad brighter than Planet Earth. But there is one fairly big difference: the price. Planet Earth is sold in 14 yd skeins (~12.8 meters) for $6.00. Soie d'Alger runs nearly $5 for a 5 meter skein. This means that Planet Earth is a little more than half the cost.

This is not to say that Soie d'Alger isn't worth the money, I think that's something each stitcher has to answer for themselves. But I think it's good to be aware of these things as you grow your thread collection. Just because the price tag is lower doesn't mean the overall cost is as well.

Here's a comparison of two similar colors of Planet Earth and Soie d'Alger. They are similar enough that I opt to carry Planet Earth because it's made domestically (vs. in France) and is less expensive overall. But let me know in the comments if it would be helpful to carry both!

Thanks for reading,

Kelsey