Sewing machine needles are things that you should familiarize yourself with if you plan on making a career of sewing or simply getting into it. You will always be replacing the needle of your sewing machine depending on the kind of fabric that you will use.
To select sewing machine needles based on fabric, follow these steps:
Table of Contents
Learn the parts of a sewing machine needle
By familiarizing yourself with the basic parts of a sewing machine needle, you can easily decide what kind of needle you need based on your fabric. Put any kind of sewing machine in front of you and lay it out on a flat surface with its top above:
- Shank. The top most part, also the thickest, is the shank. It is the part that you put into the machine.
- Shaft. Right below it is the shaft. This is the needle’s body. The shaft is the one to look at when determining the size of the needle.
- Front groove. The slit above the eye of the needle is the front groove. This is also an important factor in choosing your needle because it will support your thread.
- Point. The tip of the needle is called the point. This is also important in determining the size of your needle because it is the part that will go through the fabric.
- Scarf. The scarf can be found on the back of the needle. It is placed above the point and eye. Go for a longer scarf if you want more consistent stitches and a not so perfectly timed sewing machine.
- Eye. Finally, there is the eye. It is the hole where your thread is passed through. This is also considered when looking for the perfect size of needle for your fabric.
Choose the size of needle that you need
Needles are given in American and European sizes and vary depending on the fabric that you will use. The American sizes start with 8 for the lightest fabric, and continue from 9, 10, 11, up to 19 for the heaviest. On the other hand, European sizes come in 60 for the lightest, 65, 70, 75, to 120 for the heaviest.
- Ballpoint at 70/10 – 100/16 for knits
- Sharp/Microtex at 60/8 – 90/14 for finely woven fabrics
- Universal at 60/8 – 120/19 for knits or woven fabrics
- Denim/Jeans at 70/10 – 110/18 for heavy woven fabric and denims
- Leather at 80-12 / 110/18 for leather, suede, and thick nonwoven fabrics
- Machine Embroidery at 70/10 – 90/14 for embroidery
- Metallic at 80/12 for use with metallic threads
- Quilting at 75/11 and 90/14 for machine quilting
- Self-threading at 75/11 and 90/14 for wovens
- Stretch at 75/11 and 90/14 for lightweight knits
- Topstitch at 80/12, 90/14, and 100/16 for topstitching
- Wing/Hemstitch at 100/16 and 120/19 for decorative stitching
Put the thread through the needle’s eye
If you are already sure about the thickness of the thread that you plan to use, the best way to test your needle is to see whether it goes in smoothly. If the thread does not go through the eye easily, then it is not compatible with your needle. Get one with a bigger size. Continue trying only the next bigger size until it finally fits so that you can be sure that the needle is not too big.
Now you can choose the perfect sewing machine needle for your needs. Be smart and decide properly. Be careful in asking sales representatives for the needle that you should buy because they can lure you into just buying the expensive ones.
