Needles for machine embroidery
- So many choices…
Many embroiderers face the challenge of sewing out high stitch count and dense embroidery designs with trepidation. Professionally digitized designs, which are often very dense and multi-layered, are beautiful and hard to resist. Yet, when it comes time to sew them out you often encounter thread loops, disturbing noises as the needle attempts to penetrate dense areas, broken needles and other trials.
Often, the first instinct is to choose a larger needle to help the machine penetrate the problem areas. This is actually the opposite of the correct solution! The next time you encounter this problem, try a finer needle. The smaller needle will slide into the dense embroidery with less strain than a heavier one! Size 80/12 needles are the most frequently used for embroidery, so try a 75/11 or 70/10 the next time you encounter this problem.
Many of the same needle choices you make with regular sewing apply to automatic machine embroidery, as well. For instance, you would use a sharp needle for woven fabrics, and a ball pointed needle for knits. A larger needle is best with heavier weight fabric, and a smaller needle for lighter weight fabric. Beyond these considerations, there are some special characteristics of needles designed specifically for embroidery that you may find useful.
Machine needles designed for embroidery usually have a slightly larger eye than standard needles. This allows the more delicate embroidery threads to flow through with less friction and heat. That translates to less thread breakage and more beautiful stitches. There are also titanium embroidery needles on the market now. They are much more durable than standard needles. The manufacturers claim that they will last 10 times as long as standard needles. I’m not sure of that number, but they do last a great deal longer than standard needles in my experience. They are also more slippery than standard needles, which makes them a good choice when using sticky-type stabilizers. They do cost more than standard needles, but if you calculate the cost per hour they come out ahead.
Time after time I see students using the same old needle for multiple embroideries. Do you know that the lifespan of a standard needle is 6 to 8 hours of running time? A worn needle can cause stitch faults and weaken fabric. When sewing clothing, you should start with a fresh needle for each garment and an average garment has 20,000 stitches. It is not at all unusual for an embroidery design to have well over 50,000 stitches! Do yourself and your project a favor – change that needle!
