DMC 3682 — Mauve

Quick Conversion Table

Brand	Equivalent	Match	Buy links
Anchor	68	close	Amazon → LoveCrafts →
Madeira	0605	close	Amazon → LoveCrafts →
Cosmo ⚠	2615	close	Amazon → LoveCrafts →
Sullivans	45098	close	Amazon → LoveCrafts →

Mauve is one of those color names that carries genuine historical weight. The first synthetic aniline dye — discovered accidentally by 18-year-old William Perkin in 1856 while attempting to synthesize quinine — was a purple-pink that became an instant fashion sensation in Victorian England. Queen Victoria wore it; fashionable women across Europe followed. DMC 3682 (Mauve) sits squarely in that tradition: a warm pink-purple that has been showing up in embroidery, fashion, and interior design for over 160 years.

The Color Itself

At #D06088, DMC 3682 reads as a warm, medium-saturated rose-mauve — not quite as deep as DMC 3686 (Dark Mauve) or the still-darker DMC 3685 (Very Dark Mauve), but carrying more weight than DMC 3683 (Light Mauve) above it. It's the sort of color that reads as distinctly feminine in the Victorian sense — not the bright pink of modern fashion, but the softer, more complex hue that appears in dried rose petals, heathered tweeds, and faded hydrangeas.

On 14-count white Aida, 3682 reads as a confident mid-pink. On antique white or natural linen, those warm undertones pick up the fabric's yellow to produce something closer to a dusty English rose — slightly less vivid, more historically resonant. Many stitchers actually prefer the linen result for traditional samplers and band embroidery pieces.

Community Presence

DMC 3682 appears in a remarkable range of patterns from major publishers. Floral wreaths, Victorian-inspired samplers, rose garden designs, and vintage botanical illustrations all lean heavily on the mauve family. It's not a color you choose when you want drama — it's a color you choose when you want enduring, graceful depth.

The full mauve shading sequence — from DMC 3689 (Light Mauve) down through 3688, 3683, 3682, 3681, 3686, to 3685 — offers more nuanced gradation in this particular pink-purple range than almost any other DMC family. Stitchers building detailed roses or full-coverage Victorian-style pieces will find this range gives them everything they need for convincing shading.

In cross-country stitching for large-area fill, 3682 is reliable and consistent — its medium saturation means it doesn't tire the eye the way very bright colors can over long sessions. Parking multiple lengths while working complex gradient areas is worth considering when 3682 appears in dense blending sequences.

The cross-brand situation for 3682 is more challenging than for some colors — all four equivalents are rated close rather than exact. Anchor 68 is the commonly cited equivalent, but it pulls slightly cooler and less rosy than the warm DMC original. For many projects this distinction disappears in practice, but it's worth testing if you're building a careful gradient.

Madeira 0605 is a serviceable substitute that some stitchers prefer slightly to the Anchor equivalent for warmth. Cosmo 2615 and Sullivans 45098 are both in the right territory, with Sullivans running a touch brighter due to its characteristic slight sheen advantage over matte DMC.

If you need an in-brand DMC substitution — perhaps 3682 is out of stock or you're working from a limited stash — DMC 3731 (Very Dark Dusty Rose) occupies a nearby cool-pink space, though it leans dustier. DMC 899 (Medium Rose) goes warmer and brighter, which works in designs that can accommodate more vibrancy. Neither is a perfect drop-in replacement, but both can fill the role depending on what the surrounding colors are doing.

Dye lot consistency is worth mentioning here: mauve-range pinks have been subject to subtle batch variations over the years. If you're mid-project and need to buy more 3682, comparing the new skein to your existing thread in natural light before stitching is always wise.

Reference quality

How We Validate This Color Record

Use this page as a reference card for DMC 3682: the structured data, quick conversions, and long-form copy are all tied back to the same stored color record.

Methodology: This page renders DMC 3682, its hex value, and every brand equivalent from the site's source-of-truth color record, then checks long-form body copy against those same stored fields.
Verification status: Source-field checked. The page content is audited against the stored DMC number, brand equivalents, and match-quality labels before publishing.
Last reviewed: 2026-04-20
Approximation warning: Screen hex values, thread photos, and cross-brand conversions are reference aids. Dye lots, thread sheen, and fabric color can still shift the result in hand.

Read the Stitchies methodology

Decision guide

When to use the DMC 3682 reference page

This page should help you decide faster between palette planning, brand substitution, and shade comparison without turning the color record into a thin lookup page.

Best for

+ Palette planning when you want the stored DMC 3682 Mauve record, hex value #D06088, and linked brand equivalents in one place.
+ Checking the quickest cross-brand shortlist before you buy floss, compare stash substitutes, or route into a more specific conversion page.
+ Finding nearby shades in the pinks family before you commit to accents, shading, or background blends.

Watch for

! Screen previews are only reference aids. Mauve can shift on real fabric because thread sheen, stitch coverage, and room lighting change how the color reads.
! A stored equivalent is still a shortlist, not a guarantee that two brands will disappear into each other in the same stitched motif.
! Older charts, discontinued kit floss, and dye-lot variation can all introduce small but visible differences that the page cannot detect for you.

Before you commit

Confirm the role of DMC 3682 Mauve: decide whether you need an exact hero shade, a forgiving background, or a rough stash substitute.
Compare on project fabric: view the skein or stitched sample on the same fabric count and color you will actually use.
Use the linked conversion pages next: open the brand-specific pages when you need match-quality caveats before substituting away from the DMC reference.