As a seamstress, you carry a lot of important equipment. Your sewing machine is a vital part, but even more important is the needle.
A needle is one of the most important things you need to know about when making your needle selection. You have to consider the fabric you are using, and whether you will be putting your needle to work on thick or thin fabrics.
Selection of the right needle is not an easy job. There is no one needle that is perfect for every job, so you have to carefully consider the kind of needle you need.
Most beginner sewing pattern instructions will direct you to purchase a package of needles for your sewing machine, but you may find yourself asking, “does sewing machine needle size matter?” After all, it seems like a lot of money for a needle, and you could probably use the same needle for all your different projects.
Your sewing machine needle size is one of the most important factors to consider when you are sewing. Using the wrong size can lead to improper stitching, thread breakage, and even damage to your machine.
It is important to pick the right sewing machine needle size to match your fabric, thread, and machine.
All About Sewing Machine Needles
Sewing machine needles are the workhorses of the sewing world. They’re at the heart of every sewing machine, they keep your machine running smoothly and they’re what makes your stitches look good.
So what separates a good needle from a bad needle and why should you care? It’s easy to think that all sewing machine needles are the same but that simply isn’t true.
A needle’s shape (pointed, round or extra wide) and size (number of needles and thickness) all affect how a needle performs and how it will affect your stitches.
Sewing Machine Needle Sizes
Sewing machine needles are an important part of the sewing machine. They often go overlooked and are not given the praise they deserve.
Sewing needles are the tools that make sewing possible. They are used to insert the thread into fabric, and they can be made of a wide variety of materials, including metals, plastics, and glass.
They may be curved or straight and come in a wide variety of sizes. The three most common types are: milliner, universal, and ballpoint.
When you use a sewing machine, you must use the right needle size.
Sometimes you have to choose between several types of sewing machines, all with their own needle sizes.
To determine the right needle size, you should consider the fabric you are going to sew. Thick fabrics require a larger needle, while thinner fabrics need a smaller needle.
Handicap or Self-Threading Needles
Do you suffer from arthritis in your hands? Do you have difficulty holding on to a needle and thread? Do you have limited use of your hands?
That is where the handicap sewing machine needle comes in. A handicap sewing machine needle looks like a large regular sewing machine needle, with two (2) prongs on the end.
These prongs allow you to put the needle through the fabric, from either side, without the use of your hands.
Twin and Triple Sewing Machine Needles
While sewing machine needles come in many different sizes, the twins and the triplets are the most popular. They are for the most part the same as regular sewing machine needles, but instead of having one tip for the machine, they have two (for the twins) or three (triplets).
The main difference between the two is that twin needles are shorter overall, which means you can fit two of them on one machine needle clamp. Plus, they are great for hemming and other two-sided projects.
Triplets, on the other hand, are designed to do the same thing but three times faster, and they are ideal for stitching through multiple layers of denim or other thick fabrics.
Wing Sewing Machine Needles
Among other things, the Wing needle is known for its flexibility and efficiency. The needle has a thin shaft made of hardened steel. The thin-shaft needle can sew through a variety of fabrics, and it is often used for sewing leather and vinyl.
The needle is sharpened at each end, and both ends are slightly tapered. The thin shaft allows the needle to pierce through the thick material, while the tapered ends allow the needle to cut the material where it is being sewn.
Wing sewing machine needles are the most popular needles used in sewing. They come in a variety of sizes for different threads, fabrics, and stitching.
The most common sizes for the thread are 10, 11, and 14. These are the same sizes used in hand sewing, so if you know what size thread you like to use in your hand, you can also use it on your sewing machine in those sizes.
Leather Sewing Machine Needles
If you sew leather, you’ll be happy to know that there is a way to have your leather sewing machine needles and your “sharpen” them, too.
Leather sewing machine needles are one-time use needles, but they don’t have to be all used up to be thrown away. You can sharpen them with a leather sewing machine needle sharpener to prolong their life.
Embroidery Sewing Machine Needle
Embroidery sewing machine needle, is the small needle that is used to make stitches on the fabric surface.
There are many different sizes of the embroidery sewing machine needle, and each of them has a corresponding size of needle hole that is on the machine.
Ideally, the needle hole and the needle should be perfectly matched. If they are not, the needle will not go through the hole.
In Conclusion
Choosing your sewing machine needle size is one of the most important tasks you will do as a sewist. The wrong needle size can result in broken needles, poor stitching and even damage to your sewing machine. There are a few things to think about when choosing a needle.
The size of your needle will affect many things about the way that you stitch, especially the amount of time that you have to wait after running your machine to do anything else. Smaller needles will be able to make more stitches per inch than larger needles. If you are working with a pattern that has a lot of small details, you will want to use a smaller needle than you would otherwise. Larger needles are better for large pieces of fabric that don’t have a lot of tight stitching.
