Best hand sewing needles for beginners

How to choose hand-sewing needles

You are buying a packet that costs less than a coffee, so the useful question is which assortment saves you from buying a second one next month.

1. 1Buy an assortment, not a size — Nobody knows which needle they prefer until they have sewn with a few, and a mixed pack in several sizes costs about what a single-size packet does. The size you keep reaching for will make itself obvious within a month.
2. 2Eye size against fabric — A big eye is easier to thread and leaves a bigger hole. On quilting cotton that does not matter; on a fine woven or a silky lining it does. If threading is the problem, an embroidery needle with a long eye is a better answer than a fatter needle.
3. 3Whether a threader is included — A wire threader costs almost nothing, breaks eventually, and makes the whole business quicker. Several assortments here include one or two, and a packet of spares is the cheap way to always have one that works.
4. 4Something to keep them in — Needles in a drawer become needles in a carpet. Packs that arrive in a case, a tin or a needle book are worth the small premium, and a pincushion does the same job for the two or three you have in use.

Often overlooked: a bent needle is a finished needle. Hand needles pick up a slight curve from being pushed through heavy fabric, and a curved needle wanders off the line you are aiming at and drags at the cloth. They cost pennies each — change one the moment it stops going where you point it, exactly as you would a machine needle.

Which hand-sewing needle do you actually need?

Hand needles are sorted by type and by number, and the number runs backwards. The Home Sewing Association's needle guide gives the rule: a size 1 needle is thicker and longer, a size 12 finer and shorter. The American Sewing Guild's rule of thumb is that the finer the fabric, the higher the number: sizes 2 to 4 for medium to heavy fabric, 5 to 10 for medium to light, and 11 or 12 for fine fabric and small, delicate stitches. A higher number also means a smaller eye, which is why the finest needles are the hardest to thread.

Type is what changes with the job. Sharps are the general-purpose needle, medium length with a round eye, and the Guild's advice is that if you own only one type, make it sharps. Embroidery or crewel needles are the same length and point with a long eye, which is why people who cannot thread anything buy them for ordinary sewing too. Betweens, sold as quilting needles, are short for quick, even stitches through layers, and the Guild suggests a size 7 or 8 for a beginner. Milliners, also sold as straw needles, are long and the same thickness from eye to tip; the Home Sewing Association lists them for basting, pleating and decorative stitches, and the Embroiderers' Guild of America for wrapped stitches like French knots and bullion knots. Darners are long, for mending, and a tapestry needle has a blunt point for loosely woven fabric and needlepoint.

What a beginner pack should contain: sharps in a few middle sizes for hems, buttons and repairs; one or two embroidery needles for thick thread or a bad threading day; a couple of betweens if you think you will hand-quilt; something long, a darner or a milliner, for basting; and a threader. The Dritz and Fiskars assortments on this shelf name those shapes on the packet. The JekiiNova, FIVEIZERO and JollMono packs are sold by length and eye size instead, which suits someone who wants an easy-threading set more than a labelled one.

These are not machine needles, and they do not substitute for each other in either direction. A machine needle has its eye at the point end and a flat-sided shank made to be clamped; a hand needle has neither. If what you are looking for goes into your sewing machine, that is the machine needles shelf, not this one.

Frequently asked

What are the best hand sewing needles for beginners?

An assorted pack, because nobody knows which size they like until they have sewn with a few. Our top pick is the JekiiNova 30-pack: six lengths in a case that keeps them apart. If you would rather have sharps, betweens and embroidery needles labelled by name, the Dritz 57 and Fiskars 30-piece assortments list those shapes on the packet.

What size hand-sewing needle should a beginner buy?

An assorted pack of sharps in the middle of the range. Hand-needle numbering runs backwards — a higher number is a finer needle — and rather than guess, most people find the size they like by sewing with a mixed packet for a few weeks. A middling sharp handles a hem, a button and a seam repair without complaint.

Does a higher needle number mean a smaller needle?

Yes. Hand-needle sizes run backwards: the Home Sewing Association describes a size 1 as thicker and longer and a size 12 as finer and shorter, with a smaller eye. Use finer needles on finer fabric, and move down the numbers for heavier cloth or thicker thread.

What is the difference between sharps and embroidery needles?

The eye. They are the same length and sharpness, but an embroidery — or crewel — needle has a long eye sized for thicker thread or several strands of floss. Plenty of people who do no embroidery at all keep a packet because a long eye is far easier to thread.

What is the difference between sharps and betweens?

Length. Both have a sharp point and a small round eye, but betweens are shorter, which gives you more control for the small, even stitches of hand quilting. Sharps are the longer, general-purpose needle for hems, buttons and seams. The American Sewing Guild suggests a size 7 or 8 between for someone starting to hand-quilt.

What are milliner needles used for?

Basting, gathering and wrapped embroidery stitches. Milliners, or straw needles, are long and the same thickness all the way from eye to point, so thread wrapped around them for a French knot or a bullion knot slides off cleanly. They were first made for hat making, hence the name.

Can I use machine needles for hand sewing?

No, and it is not a matter of preference. A machine needle's eye sits at the point end and its shank is flattened on one side so a machine can clamp it, which makes it awkward to hold and impossible to sew a normal running stitch with. Hand needles and machine needles are two separate purchases.

How do you thread a needle without a threader?

Cut the end at an angle with scissors rather than biting it, flatten the end between your fingers, and bring the needle down onto the thread instead of aiming a limp end at a hole. Holding the eye against something white or against a lamp helps more than better eyesight would.

What needle is best for hand sewing patches?

A sharp or an embroidery needle in a middling size, with strong all-purpose thread. The stiff border of an embroidered patch and the denim underneath both take effort, so a thimble helps more than a bigger needle does. For leather patches, a glover's needle has a point shaped to cut through leather and goes in far more easily.

Sources

• Home Sewing Association — Hand Sewing Needle Guide (22.110, PDF)
• American Sewing Guild — Sewing Basics: Hand Sewing Needles
• Embroiderers' Guild of America — Guide to embroidery needles (crewel, milliner)