Let’s talk about…Needles

I’ve been doing a “Let’s talk about… Quilting” series about all the different parts and pieces of quilting. You can find my two previous posts here about Batting and Starch.

 I hope you are enjoying them… they are a little on the educational side. Sometimes its good to dig deep and really get to know about our quilting tools and supplies!

Let’s talk about Sewing Machine Needles…

First things first, what are the parts of a needle?

Parts of a Needle

Did you know a needle had a scarf???

The scarf of the needle is a small trough that helps the hook(in the bobbin case) pick up the thread.  The eye of the needle is actually bigger on one side, so if you are having a hard time threading your needle… try the other side. The side where the groove is also helps to guide the thread through the eye.

Needle Sizes

Needles come in all sizes and there are several types of needles you can use.

The most common universal sizes are:

• 70/10- used for lighter wt. fabrics like polyester or silk
• 80/12-most used for medium wt. fabrics like cotton and linen
• 90/14- used for heavier fabrics
• Microtex(Sharp)-slimmer needle with fine point. Excellent for piecing and using with batiks

Other types of specialty needles are:

• Ballpoint-used for knits
• Denim and Leather-for heavy fabrics like denim or leather
• Curved-for hemming

Photo by Alex Andrews on Pexels.com

How often do you change your needle?

Sewing machine needles are good for about 4-8hrs of sewing. That being said… Needles are inexpensive and I recommend changing with each project and especially when machine quilting.

You can tell when a needle is getting dull by a “punching” sound it makes when trying to pierce the fabric. Another clue is thread breaking, skipping stitches or tension issues.

Hope you enjoyed this post! Leave a comment if there is anything you would like to know more about:)

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