Vegan Needlepointers! I've got you!
Needlepoint is a beautiful and relaxing hobby / obsession :)
I am so determined to help as many people discover and enjoy it as possible. So when a fellow stitcher reached out to me on my twitter page with a needlepoint hurdle in her way I leapt at the chance to assist.
So here’s the hurdle . . . she is vegan!
Now I have loads of vegan friends and family so I’m well versed in rustling up a lovely meal, making sure not to buy them anything with leather but for some reason my brain just hadn’t connected the dots to my craft kits. Because my craft kits all contain wool!
Then I started to look at the kits out there from other designers and it was all wools, or silks.
I do offer a canvas only option in my webshop but that feels like pushing the problem back to my vegan customers, expecting them to do all the leg work to find the right threads. So I jumped on the many needlepoint and craft forums I’m part of and got to researching.
I’d like to say a big thank you to the Needlepoint Nation Facebook crew, boy did we debate this! It was a beautiful learning curve and I now have a bunch of great thread resources to share with all you vegan stitchers out there.
Are you ready! Here we go! . . .
The Pure Palette - Soy Lustre (100% soysilk) Soysilk is made from soy residue so it’s sustainable as well as vegan. It’s lovely and soft and comes in a huge range of colours.
You can see the full colour range here <=
Although more widely available in the US, there are plenty of sellers in the UK stocking it. And Etsy seems to be the best place at the moment to get your hands on it.
My big kits are worked on 12ct canvas so you can use three strands together when working with Soy Lustre. Or two strands when working on cross stitch projects on this count canvas.
Rainbow Gallery - Mandarin Floss (100% bamboo) It has a semi-matte finish so gives a similar look to that of wool. It’s strong, easy to use, and doesn’t pill. It comes on card bobbins so is better for a smaller needlepoint project instead of a cushion kit.
My Pick N Mix mini kits would suit this floss. They are worked on 12ct canvas so 5-6 thread lengths together might be needed.
Willow Fabrics stock it here <=
Rainbow Gallery also do a beautiful line of linen threads you can look at here <=
Rico - Ricorumi DK (100% cotton) Ok so the twist in the thread can be a little tricky as it’s looser than normal tapestry yarn but the coverage is great on 12ct canvas and it’s lovely and soft.
It comes in 80 different shades and I’ve found good matches on there for all of my canvasses.
The Wool Warehouse has it at just 99p per skein and with each skein measuring in at 58metres this is a really cost effective alternative. I think this might be my favourite! Here <=
DMC - Satin Thread (100% Rayon) Rayon is made up of wood & bamboo pulp. I would say this thread is suitable for small projects on canvas counts of 14ct and higher.
Lakeside Needlecraft have a large selection on offer here <=
EdMar - Rayon (100% Rayon) Now I’m yet to find a UK stockist for this one but it comes in seven different thread weights so could be a great find for vegan crafters looking to leap in to needlepoint. There Nova thread look like it would work well with my 12ct canvasses. Here <=
Women’s Institute Premium Acrylic Yarn - OK so this isn’t ideal. Knitting yarn has a looser twist to it than tapestry wool, so if you use it for needlepoint it can be tricky to wrangle and keep your tension even. But I’ve seen experienced stotchchers use it to great affect and they have a lovely range of colours. Plus it’s always on offer at Hobbycraft, so it’s a very cost-effective option. Here <=
This is more suitable for 10ct canvases And would work well as an alternative for my Biscuit Mini Kits, working them as cross stitch on plastic canvas.