Where I Actually Source My Macrame Thread
Ranked worst to best, no gatekeeping — every shop, every price, exactly as I found them
I've tested a lot of macrame thread over the years, across three countries, more failed batches than I'd like to admit. People ask where to buy macrame thread in India, and where I actually source mine — and I've never believed in sitting on that kind of information, so here it is, fully ranked, worst to best, with the actual shops and prices. Every piece in my handmade macrame jewelry starts with exactly this thread, so getting it right matters more than it might seem.
How I actually got here
The first thread I ever worked with was in Chiang Mai, Thailand, the very first time I seriously thought "maybe I could actually make macrame jewelry." I bought basic neutral colors, brown and beige, in both 1mm and 0.2mm ( both i have mentioned in rank #3), and that's genuinely where this whole thing started.
Not long after, I tried ordering Linhasita through Amazon — and paid a hefty ₹3,000 for a single chord, almost entirely in shipping. Not remotely feasible long-term. This was before i knew where to find it in India.
Then I tried Kivsin thread, hoping it would solve the sourcing problem — and the quality really is good. But the practical reality didn't work for me either: small quantities per order, one to two months of shipping time, and high cost once shipping was factored in.
It took a genuinely long time and a lot of expensive, slow experiments — before I found real, affordable, local sources. That's exactly why I'm writing this down. If it saves someone else the same long, costly search, that's the whole point.
#4 — Basic local thread (Pokhara, Nepal & Pushkar, India)
The first thread I ever worked with, and still the most widely available. In Nepal, I found it at OM Macrame in Pokhara — run by a maker who does genuinely lovely work himself and was generous with information, which is exactly the spirit I'm trying to carry forward here. In India, the same quality shows up at Taara Trésor (Wholesale Jewellery | Manufacturer | Brass, Crystal, Macrame & Silver), a shop in Pushkar that also sells brass beads and trinkets useful for macrame necklaces.
Nepal: ~₹250 INR (roughly $2.5 USD) per spool
India (Pushkar): ~₹150 INR (roughly $1.5 USD) per spool
The honest downside: the wax coating isn't applied evenly, which makes the thread looser and harder to pull tight while you're working. Functional, cheap, easy to find — but you'll feel the inconsistency the moment you start a detailed design.
#3 — Thai flat thread (Waroros Market, Chiang Mai)
Found this at the Plastic mall just outside Waroros Market in Chiang Mai. Sturdy, but not the easiest to work with, except for one standout: the 0.2mm thread — genuinely excellent, the finest, though a bit over waxed thread I've found anywhere (I never managed to find the same thread in Bangkok, so if you're in Thailand specifically for sourcing, Chiang Mai is where to go). Best suited to expert-level, fine-finish, detailed micro-macrame work — not a beginner-friendly thread.
The real limitation with both this and Kivsin thread below: they're only found in very specific places. Neither is widely available, so sourcing takes real effort.
There are also some most commonly found thick 1mm to 1.5 mm flat waxed threads called thai threads specially that you will find in Bangkok as well. Infact i found the same in Pokhara as well as in Pushkar.
One structural note: these are flat threads only, no twisted plies, so unlike some other threads, you can't separate them down into thinner strands.
#2 — Kevin's thread (sourced online, originally made for leather)
Ordered through an online marketplace (Temu-type platform), and genuinely good quality — strong, comfortable to work with, holds detail well. It comes in 0.45mm and 0.55mm, both useful sizes.
The real constraints: it only ships in packs of 12, roughly 115 yards per bundle, so there's no buying a single color or a small amount to test. And burnt ends come out noticeably darker than other threads — some of that is technique (how much you cut, how you burn it), but it's worth knowing going in, especially if it's your first time working with it.
#1 — Linhasita (found in India at Hare Krishna Silver Shop & Smith, Pushkar)
The best quality I've worked with, and — happily — sourceable within India, which matters given how expensive direct import from Brazil gets. Hare Krishna Silver Shop & Smith in Pushkar is the one shop I've found that stocks genuine Linhasita, alongside gemstones and silver work.
1mm and 0.75mm: ₹650 INR each
0.5mm: ₹700 INR
This is the thread I reach for by default now: consistent wax, reliable tension, and — my own preference — I mostly work in 0.5mm waxed polyester cord to keep micro-macrame designs from feeling bulky. If you're curious what quality actually feels like once it's in a finished piece, I wrote a bit more about that here.
A note on gatekeeping
I don't believe in sitting on sourcing information just because it took me time and money to figure out. If any of this saves someone a bad batch or a wasted order, that's the whole point of writing it down.
Have a source I haven't tried? I'd genuinely like to know — drop it in the comments on the corresponding Instagram post, or reach out directly.
These are the places I've personally been to, and where I've actually sourced from myself — this is my own experience, not a complete map of every source in India. There are likely other places worth exploring too, especially spots with larger foreigner/expat communities — Goa, Pondicherry, Auroville, places like that often have access to imported craft supplies. This is just what I know firsthand.
For context: even here in Manali, where I currently live, I haven't found Linhasita anywhere locally — the only thread available is the Thai-style cord, not even the basic 0.5mm I mentioned above, which I've only found in Pushkar and Pokhara. There are a few local shops here that do macrame, and their work is good at their own level — this isn't a criticism of them at all. But if you're working at a more expert level and specifically want higher-quality thread, these are the sources I actually know to point you toward.
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