DMC Mouliné Spécial

3840 — Lavender Blue light

Blues family

Below: DMC 3840 (Lavender Blue light), a medium-light, moderately saturated blue shade with hex #85A3CE and RGB 133, 163, 206. Find its closest J&P Coates, Sullivans, and Cosmo matches ranked by visual similarity, plus 8 similar DMC shades and a full set of color harmony picks.

Hex
#85A3CE
RGB
133, 163, 206
HSL
215°, 43%, 66%
Lab
66.2, 0.1, -25.3
Lightness
66%
Light
Saturation
43%
Muted
Hue
215°
Family
Blues

Brand Equivalents for DMC 3840

Top 5 closest matches in each brand, ranked by visual color similarity.How matching works

DMC 3840Lavender Blue light

Closest match to DMC 3840 in 43 more brands

The single nearest shade in every other palette we hold, from needlepoint silks and wools to fuse beads and yarn. Match quality is perceptual colour distance: 93% and up is hard to tell apart, under 75% is a visible shift.

More stranded cotton

Ariadna161489% Good
PNK Kirov926685% Good
Luca-S14583% Fair
Riolis41083% Fair
Dimensions17021 Delft Blue79% Fair
Finca321975% Fair
Gamma3116 голубой72% Approx

Hand-dyed & overdyed

Caron017 Blue Lavender90% Good
Needle Necessities1101 Clearly Blue87% Good
Olde Willow086 Malibu Blue71% Approx
Dinky Dyes10 Cloudy Sky69% Approx
ThreadworX1015 Ice Blue66% Approx
The Gentle Art0210 Blue Jay66% Approx
Crescent Colors Silk048 Sea Breeze45% Approx
Classic Colorworks SilkPetticoat Blue33% Approx
The Gentle Art Simply Shaker7012 Picket Fence20% Approx

Silk

Eterna Silk2900 Copenhagen Blue Light95% Best
Kimono Silk334 Baby Jonathan80% Fair
Kreinik Silk Mori5012 Lightest Navy80% Fair
Soie d'Alger1433 Blue Violet light72% Approx
Silk and Ivory139 Thistle72% Approx
Vineyard Silk085 Sky65% Approx
YLI Silk207 Electric Blue26% Approx

Wool for needlepoint

Appleton461 Cornflower33% Approx

Metallic, rayon & specialty

Rainbow GalleryS861 Wedgewood Blue88% Good
Madeira Rayon1028 Caribbean Blue77% Fair
Anchor Marlitt1059 Blue very light74% Approx
Kreinik525 Portsmouth Blue dk69% Approx
Coats Rayon5 Copenhagen63% Approx
Glissen Gloss111 Pale Blue35% Approx
Petite Treasure BraidPB205 Amethyst32% Approx

Other threads & beads

Coats Puppets0525 0525Puppets80% Fair
Mill Hill Beads0200670% Approx
Planet Earth180 hilton head65% Approx
Planet Earth Pepperpot112 water36% Approx

Fuse beads

Artkal SSE3 Winter89% Good
PerlerP93 Blueberry Cream77% Fair
HamaH46 Cornflower Blue68% Approx
CocoJ0863% Approx
MARDD263% Approx

Yarn for crochet & knitting

Bernat Super Value53725 Hot Blue57% Approx
Caron One Pound10613 Lavender Blue50% Approx
Red Heart Super Saver0347 Light Periwinkle47% Approx

Need the runners-up, or a whole pattern converted? The thread conversion chart ranks every alternative for DMC 3840 (Lavender Blue light) in any brand.

Similar DMC Colors to 3840

Closest DMC threads by perceptual color distance, sorted from most to least similar.

Working with DMC 3840

On white fabric
2.6:1
On dark fabric
8.1:1
Temperature
cool
Closest to
lavender

It has moderate contrast on both light and dark fabric — usable on either, but test a few stitches on your chosen ground first.

DMC 3840 in other DMC lines

DMC reuses base numbers across its specialty lines, so the same shade can exist as a satin, a metallic, or a sparkle floss under a prefixed code. Here is where Lavender Blue light turns up.

DMC 3840 is a Mouliné Spécial-only number: there is no Satin, Light Effects, or Étoile version of this shade. For a sheen or sparkle in the same tone, blend one strand of the nearest metallic with two strands of DMC 3840.

Diamond painting: the same number is sold as a drill — Diamond Dotz D3840, Diamond Drills USA AD3840. A kit legend or drill bag marked 3840 means this colour. See the diamond painting DMC chart for every code with drill availability.

Color Harmonies for DMC 3840

DMC threads that pair well with 3840, based on color theory harmony rules in CIELAB color space.

Complementary
Opposite on the color wheel — maximum contrast
Analogous
Adjacent hues — smooth, natural transitions
Triadic
Evenly spaced at 120° — vibrant and balanced
Monochromatic
Same hue, different lightness — great for shading

Blues Family

DMC 3840 in context with nearby shades from the blues color family.

About DMC 3840

DMC 3840 is the floss known as Lavender Blue light: a moderately saturated, medium-light member of the blues family with sky blue tones. The balanced and versatile character of this shade lends itself well to whale designs and sapphire accents. Stitchers frequently choose it for porcelain patterns and hydrangea blooms in their projects.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does DMC 3840 look like?

DMC 3840 (Lavender Blue light) is a medium-light shade in the blues family with hex #85A3CE and RGB 133, 163, 206. Stitchers reach for it in projects featuring cool-toned backgrounds and nautical themes.

Which Anchor thread matches DMC 3840?

The closest Anchor match for DMC 3840 (Lavender Blue light) is Anchor 130 (Sky Blue) with a 81% match based on visual color similarity. Other near matches include Anchor 175 (Cornflower Blue Light, 79%) and Anchor 140 (Royal Blue Light, 74%).

What DMC colors are similar to 3840?

The closest DMC threads to 3840 are 157 Cornflower Blue very light (ΔE 4.06), 159 Grey Blue light (ΔE 5.12), and 800 Delft Blue pale (ΔE 5.24). These are useful substitutes when 3840 is unavailable or for building gradients.

When should I use DMC 3840?

Reach for DMC 3840 (Lavender Blue light) when your project calls for cool-toned backgrounds, nautical themes, winter scenes, forget-me-nots. Its medium-light character carries both small accents and wider palette work; the harmony picks on this page show natural companions to 3840.

What fabric color works best with DMC 3840 (Lavender Blue light)?

It has moderate contrast on both light and dark fabric — usable on either, but test a few stitches on your chosen ground first. For reference, 3840 has a contrast ratio of about 2.6:1 on white fabric and 8.1:1 on black. As a cool shade, its cool cast recedes visually — useful for backgrounds, shadows, water and sky, and calm, restful palettes.

Is there a metallic or satin version of DMC 3840?

No. DMC 3840 (Lavender Blue light) exists only as Mouliné Spécial six-strand cotton — there is no Satin, Light Effects, or Étoile code for it. For a matching shine, blend one strand of the nearest Light Effects colour with two strands of the cotton.

What is the diamond painting drill code for DMC 3840?

Diamond Dotz D3840 and Diamond Drills USA AD3840 carry the same number. Diamond painting adopted DMC's numbering, so a kit legend or drill bag marked 3840 is this colour regardless of drill brand — though each manufacturer dyes to the reference in its own batches, so avoid mixing brands inside one large block.

Which other thread brands come closest to DMC 3840?

Outside the main floss brands, the nearest shades we hold are Eterna Silk 2900 Copenhagen Blue Light (95%), Caron 017 Blue Lavender (90%), Ariadna 1614 (89%). Percentages are perceptual colour distance between the two swatches; anything above about 93% is hard to tell apart on fabric.