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When I outset started sewing, I used the exact same blazon of needle for MONTHS.  The pack of needles came with my motorcar, then I thought they worked for every project.  I only inverse my needle when it broke or aptitude, and I sure didn't consider my fabric or thread type before I started sewing.

Fast forwards many years and sewing life lessons learned, and I can now tell y'all picking the right needle for your purpose makes a HUGE deviation in your success.  Choosing the wrong needle can harm the machine, the needle, and the fabric.

Thus, let'south talk nearly sewing auto needle sizes, sewing machine needle types, and how to choice the right needle to use for your projects.

I've even put together a free printable sewing machine needle chart and guide that you can print out at the end of this postal service to go along side by side to your machine for future reference!  And if all this information seems overwhelming, I'll give y'all a rundown at the end of which needles I retrieve are best to keep in your sewing box.

Sewing Machine Needles Explained

Manus Sewing Needle vs. Sewing Machine Needle

This postal service will focus on the different types of sewing auto needles.

A sewing motorcar needle is solid at the top of the needle, and the eye of the needle is located at its bespeak.  A needle used for manus sewing, in contrast, will have the centre at the very top of the needle.  Just recall, these are not interchangeable.

Hither's a movie comparison of the two.

hand sewing needle vs sewing machine needle

Parts of a Sewing Machine Needle

To understand how different types of sewing motorcar needles differ, information technology's essential to know the parts of a needle.

parts of a sewing needle

At their top, household sewing machine needles are round on the front side and flat on the back.  This makes sure you don't insert the needle the wrong way when setting up your motorcar.  This fatter, top part of the needle is called the shank.

parts of a sewing machine needle

Below the height of the needle, there is the shaft, which is the round role with a groove through which the thread volition travel down before going through the eye of the needle, which is the pigsty.  The needle ultimately ends in a point or tip.

scarf of a needle

Above the eye of the needle is a brusque groove chosen a scarf, which allows the hook of the sewing machine to option up the needle thread to grade the run up.

Changing the size or shape of the middle, shank, scarf, groove, or tip changes the function of a needle, every bit nosotros will soon see.

Full general Rules For Choosing A Sewing Needle

In well-nigh cases, you will selection your sewing machine needle size and type based on your fabric and thread characteristics. Now, permit's delve into that.

Sewing Motorcar Needle Sizes Explained: What Do the Numbers Mean?

Needles come up in dissimilar sizes and are described by both an American and European size. This size describes the thickness of the shaft.

To avert confusion, when purchasing needles, you will see the European number followed past a backslash and and then the American number—for example, ninety/xiv.

In that location is an easy-to-remember correlation between the European number and the exact diameter of the needle.  A 100 needle is 1 mm in diameter.  Thus, a ninety needle is 0.nine mm in diameter, and a 110 needle is ane.1 mm in bore.

European American How It'south Written
lx 8 lx/8
65 ix 65/9
70 10 seventy/x
75 xi 75/eleven
80 12 eighty/12
xc 14 90/fourteen
100 16 100/xvi
110 18 110/18

The Rule of Sewing Car Needle Sizes: The smaller the needle number, the finer the needle, and the finer the thread it can suit.  The larger the needle number, the thicker the needle, and the thicker the thread it can adjust.

Sewing Motorcar Needle Size: Considering Textile Weight

28 Pieces Fabric Quilting Patchwork Fabric Square Sewing Craft Fabric Printed Fabric Bundle with Scissors for Sewing Quilting Handmade DIY Crafts (25 x 25 cm)

In general, choose your sewing automobile needle size based on the weight of the fabric you want to sew.  (Nosotros'll exist discussing the types of needles right afterwards this.)

Fabric weight is determined past the thickness and composition of the threads it is made of and the density of these threads.  A thicker, or more heavyweight fabric, needs a thicker needle to be able to penetrate information technology.  A lighter, delicate fabric will be damaged by a thick needle and thus needs a finer needle.

Here are a few examples of which needle to apply for which fabric below.  Since each blazon of fabric comes in different weights, there is no one-size-fits-all answer to the question of which needle to utilize for each blazon of fabric. Take denim, for instance.  There are sparse, lightweight denim fabrics, and then there are very heavy denim fabrics.  The thicker fabrics volition need a thicker needle.

So, have this equally a general guide to help you larn rather than the set-in-rock rule!

Fabric Weight Examples Needle Size
Lightweight Gauze, crepe, chiffon, tulle, organza, silk, voile, tricot, net, lace 65/9 – 75/11
Medium-weight Taffeta, quilting cotton, jersey, satin, poplin, seersucker, broadcloth, rayon, linen, knit, elastic, thin denim, velvet, gingham 75/11-ninety/14
Heavy-weight Upholstery, heavier denim, vinyl, corduroy, gabardine, tweed, sail, velour, wool, leather, oilcloth 100/16
Very heavy-weight Extra heavy denim, leather, or upholstery 110/18

Sewing Machine Needle Sizes: Thread Weight and Type

Also, make certain to take into account the weight and blazon of thread yous are using.

A larger needle accommodates a heavier thread.  If you lot are using a minor thread with a big needle, the needle'due south indicate volition leave large holes in the fabric that are not fully filled by the fine thread.  This can mimic a tension trouble and is not aesthetically pleasing.  If you lot use a heavy thread with a fine needle, you risk skipped stitches, broken threads, and what may also look like a tension problem when the thread has difficulty running through the needle'due south eye.

Types of Sewing Automobile Needles

types of sewing machine needles

There are iii main types of general-purpose sewing car needles.  The best type of sewing machine needle for your projection depends on the fabric type: woven or knit.

  • Universal point needles are general-purpose needles with a slightly rounded point.  They are "jack of all trades, but primary of none."  As such, they will work for about woven or knit fabrics.  When in doubt of which needle to option for my project, I e'er beginning with an 80/12 or 90/14 universal needle.
  • Ballpoint needles , or jersey needles, have rounded points and slip betwixt loops of knit fabrics rather than piercing the material, which leads to fabric damage or skipped stitches.  Because these are made specifically for sewing on knits, choose a ballpoint needle when y'all know your fabric is a knit.
  • Sharp point needles , or Microtex needles, accept a sharp bespeak and are peculiarly good for piercing loftier-density woven fabric. Because of the abrupt point, they tin can pierce the material cleanly with minimal resistance. Choose this type of needle for tightly woven natural fabrics like silk or for very heavyweight wovens.  These are also peachy for topstitching, which may crave sewing through several layers of fabric and interfacing.

What are the types of specialty needles?

SINGER 04719 Universal Twin Stretch Sewing Machine Needle

While the higher up iii general-purpose sewing needles cover many projects, there are besides specialty needles that achieve certain tasks even better. Virtually sewing tasks will be served well using the right needle from the all-purpose needles, but information technology'south important to know other options when it comes to troubleshooting sewing bug.

This is not an exhaustive listing, but I'll give you some examples.

Topstitch Needle

Topstitch needles have a very big eye, a very precipitous bespeak, and an enlarged groove to conform thick, decorative threads necessary for topstitching multiple layers.

Stretch Needle

Stretch needles are a "specialty" version of a ballpoint needle and thus besides do not harm stretch fabrics when sewing.

Stretch needles are slightly less rounded at the tip than ballpoint needles and are useful for preventing skipped stitches on elastic materials such equally rib knit, Lycra, or spandex.  They have a modified scarf and eye, allowing or improve pickup of the top thread past the hook.

Denim/Jeans Needle

These very stiff needles have a long, sharp signal and work well on tightly woven heavyweight fabrics such as denim and canvas.

Metallic Needle

Metallic needles have elongated eyes, assuasive metallic and other specialty threads to laissez passer through with minimal friction, thus decreasing thread breakage.

Machine Embroidery Needle

These are used for machine embroidery with rayon, polyester, and even cotton motorcar embroidery threads.  The point is medium-sharp (betwixt a ballpoint and sharp needle), and the needle has an oversized centre and groove.  These features protect delicate threads confronting actress friction while embroidering.

Leather Needle

When sewing with leather, choose a leather needle, a wedge-shaped needle that resembles an arrowhead.  The needle pierces the leather without violent or damaging it or causing skipped stitches.  Skipped stitches are formed if the leather grabs the needle and doesn't let go every bit the sew together is formed.  Do non use leather needles on knits or woven fabrics!

Quilting Needle

Quilting needles have a special taper to their precipitous point, making them perfect for auto quilting, especially piecing.  Their tapered design penetrates multiple layers of fabric and fifty-fifty areas with intersecting seams easily.

Twin Needle (Double Needle)

Here, two needles are located on a single shaft and produce ii rows of parallel stitches.  I utilize my twin needle most when I am sewing hems on garments, making a faux comprehend sew.  They are also used for pintucks, decorative topstitching, and heirloom sewing.

E'er use the handwheel to accelerate your needle when starting to stitch with a twin needle to brand sure it won't hitting the presser foot earlier picking upward speed.  Been there, seen that, broke the twin needle in the past!

When purchasing a twin needle, the start number of the package is the distance between the needles, and the second number is the size of the needle.  These double needles come with many dissimilar types of points such every bit denim, stretch, universal, and more.

At that place are also triple needles if you find yourself needing a line of three parallel stitches!

Hemstitch Needle (Wing Needle)

Hemstitch needles have a wide bract, or wing, on each side of the needle.  This cuts a decorative groove in the material each time the needle is passed through.

Other Types of Needles

There are also double centre needles, which are universal needles with ii eyes for two unlike threads.  There are quick-threading needles, which accept a slot on the slide to slip the thread into the eye.   I'one thousand sure there are ones I'm failing to mention, just I've cleaned out my needle stash and not meet any others at the moment!

So, are sewing motorcar needles universal and interchangeable?

As you can run across, all sewing automobile needles are non universal and interchangeable.

Yes, there is a universal type of sewing needle that works great for many projects, but selecting the best needle for your project may mean choosing a sharp or ballpoint needle instead for better results.

One sewing needle may work perfectly for one project but may cause major issues for another.  A leather needle will not work well on knits, and a ballpoint needle won't work well on thick woven fabrics.   Taking care to pick the appropriate needle for your sewing is worth the fourth dimension!

What Sewing Auto Needles to Go on In Your Sewing Box?

Choosing a sewing needle may seem very complicated with all the options, only just know in many cases, there are several right answers for needles that will work.

If you're not sure what you need when yous get-go buy your sewing motorcar, I'd recommend purchasing universal needles, sharp needles, ballpoint or stretch needles, and topstitch needles, each in a few different sizes.

If you want to sew leather or accept other specific needs such as twin needle stitching, add those specialty needles to your collection likewise.

When is information technology time to change needles?

changing needles

Always change the needle if you significantly change the weight of thread or type of fabric (for instance, from knit to woven material). Some sewers recommend changing needles after every project or a sure number of stitches or amount of fourth dimension, but that'south not always necessary.

A dull needle or bent needle, though, tin can wreak havoc on your sewing project.  Here are some indications that information technology may be time to change your needle:

  • Threads breaking
  • Popping sound when puncturing the cloth (suggests the needle tip is dull or damaged)
  • Skipped or uneven stitches
  • Big punctures in the fabric

If you've never changed needles, check out my tutorial for how to change a sewing auto needle.

How To Bank check A Needle Before Sewing

Sewing with a bent needle is a bad idea since the needle could break while sewing and hurt something or someone!

To cheque if the needle is bent, remove it from the auto and lay the flat side of the shank on a flat surface.  If the distance between the shaft of the needle and the flat surface is even, you're good to get.  If not, discard the needle and try another.

Sewing Machine Needle Chart – Download Below

At present that you've learned more almost choosing the proper sewing automobile needle, download my handy sewing machine needle nautical chart pdf file featuring all the data hither.  Delight respect the time I put into making this and do not redistribute or resell information technology. Rather, send other sewers to my website to download their own re-create.

sewing machine needle chart & guide with sizes and types