Needles         

Here are some general tips and information on needles and the embroidery process. It is a good starting place for newbies and excellent recall for seasoned embroiderers alike.  

General Information:

•  The lower the number, the smaller the needle regardless of the type.
• Fine fabrics, satin, silk, linen, require the #60/8 Sharp or #65/9 Sharp. Either would be good choices.  Those fabrics are snagged by a dull or overly large needle.
• To pierce heavy fabric like denim, use #80/12 Sharp or #90/14 Sharp.
•  Knits and loosely woven fabrics need a ball point needle. The finer the jersey and pique knit use a smaller needle.
• Cotton fabrics work well with sharp or universal needles.
• Tapestry is also loosely woven so you will want to use a ball point needle. These will more easily go between the threads of the fabric instead of penetrating them.
• Wedge point needles are made for plastics, vinyl and leather goods. Wedge point needles make a ‘slice’ rather than a hole. If your needle is causing the design to be "cut" out of your fabric, try a wedge point.   Here’s a deal!  Originally $4,999.00 and on sale for $39.99… 
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• Cardstock demands a very fine, sharp needle and the smaller the better.  It will also require a fine thread, at least a #50 or #60 thread.
•  Metallic needles are sharp and have a larger hole.  This allows the metallic thread to feed easier and therefore, less thread breaks.  There are ways to stop metallic thread breaks, but that is another blog.
  
• If you think your needle (not yet attached to the machine) might have an eye that is too small or is not smooth, you can take a 12” piece of the thread and put it through the hole.  Hold the thread vertically and spin the needle, this demonstrates how easily the thread moves through the hole.

Embroidery needles have a slight amount of flexibility to them, allowing better movement.  Sewing needles are generally more rigid. Since the needle mechanics are all in movement, the needle needs to be flexible.  

The reality is that sewing and embroidery have very little in common in their process.  Here is one reason why: 

A sewing machine uses the top and bottom threads equally to combine two fabrics together.  You will use an equal amount of thread with the top and bottom.  This diagram shows the process.

However, an embroidery machines uses the top thread to cover your fabric while the bottom thread holds the top thread snugly to the fabric.   This method uses approximately 40% more top than bottom thread.   This diagram is courtesy of Designs in Machine Embroidery, you already know that you will see top thread on the bottom of your design, as it should be. 

A worn needle can be one cause of tension issues.  Here are “Test Your Tension” files for the most common embroidery formats.   I have placed the test file in my machine’s memory.  If you don’t have a memory on your machine, keep this file handy and use it periodically.  Here’s how:

1. Use contrasting threads for top thread, bobbin thread and fabric so that you can readily see where your thread is landing at the current tension setting.
2. If possible, use different brands of threads.
3. Observe your test.  The appearance of the majority of your test indicates your general tension.
4. If adjustments are needed, make them in small increments, and repeat the test.
5. Naturally, the factory setting is the most accurate, but over time, wear and movement will make a reset inaccurate without a fully trained technician.
6. Keep the stitched out pattern for future reference.
7. Check often, once every 250,000 stitches is not too often.  I recommend that you make a note of the number of stitches you have each time you change the needle.  See this blog for more information. It is easy if you use a China Marker and write directly on the plastic part of your machine.
   

 Here are the tension tests you need.  Download and use them.