Cross Stitch, Where To Buy DMC Strand In Hong Kong?

I like doing cross stitch. It's been a hobby of mine since highschool. Something that I never outgrew.

I love the peace of working with just my hands and seeing the picture come to life. I love the many colors and shades of a thread; so I always have a project lying somewhere, waiting for it to be completed.

Coming to Hong Kong, I brought patterns with me to finish. The problem is, finding where to buy the Aida cloth, DMC threads and cross stitch needle.

Let's face it. Cross stitch is no longer popular. Even in the Philippines, I had a hard time looking for a cross stitch shop. Most of the sellers moved online; either to Shoppee or Lazada.

But those online stores are not popular here. Hong Kong is a collection of small islands and getting around to shop is pretty easy. Aside from food orders, I don't think people would bother buying online here as opposed to simply going to the physical store. What I did find are sellers of complete kits, but made in China.

Buying a complete set is nice, and relatively cheap. The cloth, threads and needle are all included with the pattern. Plus, to my delight, the pattern is printed (stamped) onto the cloth itself! Gone are the days of looking into a pattern, counting each symbol and stitching into the cloth. Hoping that you didn't count or stitch wrong.

This is the pattern I bought. It's big! 547W x 182H count or about 49.75" x 16.5".

But with all good things, something has to give. On those Chinese made kits, the problem is the thread. They are not the original DMC threads, even if the color and codes are the same.

What a shame that my first project of this complete kit, I used the thread included only to find some of them too thin or easily frayed. So for my next project, I opted to hunt for the original DMC thread. I bought some kits but would use original thread to stitch them with. This would ensure that I have the best result!

After hounding the net for DMC thread, my salvation came from a small Filipino shop at World Wide House in Central, exit B.

The shop is at the 3rd floor, right next to the escalator. It's very hard to miss!

The owner is a sweet Filipina that would let you pick the threads you need from the tower of cases. Just remember to close the flap of the box neatly after. No need to pull out the box.

DMC is 6 HKD a piece. No retail cut thread here! She also sells knitting yarns, other sewing accessories and plenty of Pinoy products!

Do you like doing cross stitch, or have tried it before? Let me know at the comment section.