The Best Embroidery Needles for Digitizing Embroidery!

Choosing the right needle for your embroidery machine is important for a consistent stitch quality, and it can also make a big difference in how long your machine will last. Having a variety of different needle types and sizes lets you tailor the project to the needs of each job — while also reducing wear and tear on your equipment. The following content also has some reference value for embroidery digitizing. 

Embroidery needles are used to stitch together threads of different lengths and thicknesses, as well as to move pieces of fabric. Even so, you still want good results when using the correct needle size. Machine embroidery can be challenging because each stitch you create is made with many threads that may not match perfectly. If the thread is too long for the space available on the embroidery machine, or too short for the thread used in the fabric, you may end up with unsightly gaps or holes in the design.

A long thread can make it difficult for the needle to go through the fabric because it needs to go where it needs to go. This can also cause the needle to get stuck on other fabrics in the design. The short thread may be too thin, making it difficult for the needle to pierce the fabric where you want a strong stitch. Knowing how to choose the right size needle is essential if you want professional-looking embroidery.

It can be difficult to tell which needle you need to use on your embroidery machine. In this section, we will introduce the various types of embroidery machine needles and what they do. We'll also cover how they work, how you can choose the right size, and how the different brands compare. let's start!

The Best Embroidery Needles or Embroidery

To choose the right needle for my project, I look for these factors that help me determine needle size: thread length and fabric thickness.

Thread length is measured from the eye of the needle to the tip of the needle. The longer the thread, the longer it takes from start to finish. If you want a longer stitch, choose a needle with a long eye-to-point measurement or an extra long needle, depending on your machine. Long threads need just as much space as short threads. If you match the lengths correctly to the fabric and design, there won't be any gaps or mistakes so that each thread has enough room to pass through without jamming anything else in the design.

The thread thickness is determined by the number of threads. A higher thread count means your threads are finer and finer. If you don't choose a needle with a thin enough eye-to-point measurement, this can make it more difficult for the needle to pierce the fabric. On the other hand, if your thread is too thick to penetrate the fabric, you will need a thicker needle if you don't choose a needle with a thick enough eye-to-point measurement.

As we said, stitching involves many thin threads of varying lengths and widths that may not be consistent in length or thickness. Choose the right needle size and thread style to reduce the chance of making mistakes, mis-stitching, or jamming.

Embroidery Needle Parts

Before choosing the right embroidery needle, you need to know what the different parts of an embroidery needle are and how they work. When you know the different elements of an embroidery machine needlework, you can better determine which one will help you stitch when choosing the right size.

Shank

The needle handle is the main part that attaches to the machine and holds it in place. Here you can find the needle size number of the needle on most embroidery needles.

Some household machines use flat handle household needles, including Brother and Baby Lock six- and ten-needle machines. Industrial machines such as Tajima, Baludan, Melco Crown, etc. use round handle commercial needles. Needles with flat shanks usually (but not always) start with 15×1, needles with round shanks usually start with DBxK5.

Shaft

The shaft is the part of the needle that sticks out of the machine or looper and holds the threads as you work. You can measure the length of the shaft by placing a ruler just above where the shaft is attached to the machine and measure until you reach the end point. The longer the thread, the longer it takes from start to finish.

Eye

The eye is on one end of the sewing needle, so you can easily connect the thread to sew.

An increase in eye size also increases the axis of the eye, allowing the eye to be supported. There are three types of eyelets: general purpose eye, embroidery eye and metal eye. Embroidery eyelets are often used for thicker and woolen threads. I use Schmetz embroidery needles for my embroidery projects. It is longer than a swivel needle used for regular sewing.

Point

The tip of the needle is where the thread is held in place during the stitching process and where it penetrates the fabric. It is thought to be at the end of the needle with an eyelet or ring in its center. The size of this ring depends on whether you are using a general-purpose eyelet or an embroidery machine eyelet.

How the needle is sharpened also affects its performance. There are two ways to illustrate this:

Rounded Point Needles or Ballpoint Tips

These needles have rounded tops, just like regular sewing needles. They are great for delicate fabrics, but require more force and tend to cause skipped stitches on thicker fabrics.

Sharp Tip

Make sure you choose a needle that is pointed and not blunt. Blunt points will slow down your stitching because you have to push harder. The sharp tip will go smoothly through the fabric so you can finish projects faster.

Groove

Notches are depressions in the needle that hold the floss or thread. It cuts at the front of the shaft, making it easier for the thread to pass through the fabric.

The depth of this groove is determined by the machine manufacturer. Schmetz needles for embroidery machines have a specific groove depth that has been set.

Scarf

Scarves are small grooves on the needle shaft. The scarf helps the thread lay flat, reducing the chance of stitches jumping or damaging the thread or fabric. A scarf will change how easy or difficult you are to needle and thread. In addition to eliminating skipped stitches, scarves make hooks easier to loop.

Embroidery Needle Size

If you're just starting out in the field of embroidery, figuring out the size of your needle can seem really confusing. When you first start using an embroidery machine, it can be difficult for you to tell the correct size needle.

The main thing to keep in mind when choosing an embroidery needle is that it should fit your fabric without causing stitch jumps (especially if you're working with thicker fabrics). Before choosing a needle size, read your manual and learn about the different stitch settings on your machine. If you're not sure what size to buy for your embroidery machine, it's always a good idea to get free measurements from an embroidery expert or even a machine builder.

Embroidery needle sizes are divided into two systems: the American system and the European system. In the US system, needles are sized from 8 to 12, and in the European system, needles are sized from 60 to 120. Needle size refers to the diameter of the blade or needle shaft. For example, if the needle size is 75/11, that means the needle has a blade diameter of 0.75mm.

75/11, 80/12 and 90/14 are the most commonly used needle sizes for home embroidery machines. For commercial use, the dimensions will vary as multi-needle machines are used for commercial purposes.

The smaller size is for lightweight fabrics like silk, and the 80/12 is for medium-weight fabrics like linen and quilted cotton.

For heavy fabrics like jeans, a felt needle size 90/14 is best.

Embroidery Needle Type

Universal needles

Universal needles are the most common type of needles used in home embroidery machines. They are also available for commercial use in embroidery shops and garments. General purpose needles are generally easier to thread and thread through fabrics than other needles. The main features of the universal needle include:

Universal needles are available in standard needle and shank styles. Ballpoint pen tips can be used with standard needles, but sharp tips are not compatible with standard needles.

General purpose needles are typically used for light to medium weight fabrics such as silk, satin, denim, and quilted cotton for conventional sewing machines. For sewing machine embroidery, general purpose needles are used on all types of fabrics except heavy fabrics like canvas and denim.

Sharp needle

Sharp needles are generally not compatible with universal needle systems. They can be used for freehand embroidery, or to get smaller stitches on lightweight fabrics like silk and satin. You can choose from three to twelve sizes.

Universal needles are even easier to use, they have two tips - sharp and ballpoint - whereas sharp needles come in only one type.

Sharp needles are most commonly used for freehand embroidery, gathers, cross stitch, French knit and other open forms of embroidery.

Sometimes, when using this stitch in the machine, you may skip stitches. This can happen if the eye of the needle is too small or the thread tension is too tight.

Ballpoint pen needle

Ballpoint pen needles are designed to easily pass through coarse fabrics such as denim and canvas. They can be used on heavier fabrics like wool, felt, and denim, but they can be difficult to thread. Ballpoint pen needles range in size from 3 to 9. Ballpoint needles have longer scarves than general purpose or sharp needles. You'll want to make sure the needle's scarf is long enough to hold the thread properly during the stitching process.

For quilting purposes, ballpoint needles are used for embroidery of rounded or scalloped designs and curves.

Krull Needle

The eye of the needle is of medium length, the shaft is a little thinner than the eye (the eye is slightly raised at the top of the shaft), and the tip is pointed.

Crewel needles have a long scarf for rough fabrics such as denim, canvas, wool, felt and fur.

Krull needles are a little different from stretch needles because the tips of these needles are a bit longer. They come in sizes 1 to 12, the needle size will depend on the size of the fabric.

Round needles have been specially developed for small embroidery stitches such as twill stitches, twill stitches, and smooth work. Crewel is an ancient technique that involves sewing small beads onto fabric with a needle or other gadget.

Tapestry needle

These needles are used in tapestry weaving and embroidery. Tapestry stitches are used for the most basic embroidery stitches, such as stem stitches and satin stitches.

The tapestry needle has a slightly rounded tip and a long scarf. They are used for outlines and fine details in cross stitch, needlepoint, bargello and other open embroidery. Tapestry needles with or without eyes.

Tapestry needles come in a variety of sizes: from 18 to 28, they can be used for even the smallest details of the stitches.

For machine embroidery, tapestry needles are most often used for decorative stitches such as satin and contour stitches. The depth of the stitch will depend on the size of the needle.

Chenille needle

Chenille stitches are used for chenille embroidery. They are used for two basic stitches: split stitch and split chain stitch. In these stitches, the needle penetrates all layers of the fabric and forms a thread. Split stitches are made with a knitting method, while split chain stitches are created by piercing one layer of fabric and pulling the thread through to punch another hole nearby.

The chenille needle has small eyes and a corkscrew shape on one end. They are available in sizes 13 to 28.

The chenille needles are very flexible and allow you to wiggle them in layers of fabric without causing any damage.

With a chenille stitch, you can create holes in your embroidery without sewing, but there are some limitations. You can't use chenille needles for anything other than machine embroidery because they won't penetrate all thick layers of material like leather. The advantage is that the chenille needle is not sharp and has no sharp points. They don't damage the fabric like needles do. When using batting, I prefer to use an embroidery needle, but if I absolutely must use all 6 strands of floss, I use a size 22-18 and it works just fine.

Miliner needle

These needles have a long, straight point. The eyes are very small and the shaft is thick. The Miller stitch has a very small eye, which makes it suitable for embroidering with thick fabrics such as velvet or hard leather.

Miliner needle are used for special sewing techniques such as tangle stitches and silk satin stitching. Most of these techniques require you to sew several layers of fabric. Most of the thread is wrapped around the shaft with gold bar knots or Brazilian embroidery stitching. They are available in sizes 1-10 and 15-18. It sounds rather confusing, but they appear this way.

These are useful for satin stitching and other techniques involving multi-layer fabrics, such as folding chain stitches, tangle stitches, and split seams.

In my French knot project I used these needles and they are impressive.

Material for embroidery needles

Like any other embroidery tool, you should make sure that the needles you are buying are of good quality.

The most popular materials used to make embroidery needles are steel, gold and titanium.

Gold needles have been used for centuries, but they also have some disadvantages. First, gold is very soft and easily bends and breaks. And because it's soft, it won't hold its shape when stored in a box or drawer with other needles. Gold is also very expensive, and many gold needles today are alloys that contain nickel.

Chrome Plated Pins

These needles are mainly used for embroidering leather, suede, corduroy and other thick fabrics. These needles come in ballpoint and sharp varieties.

Chrome-plated needles can be very sharp, but they won't rust like sterling silver or nickel-plated needles can sometimes do.

They can be sterilized and have a longer lifespan because the material is more resistant to discoloration than sterling silver or nickel-plated needles. However, if you put too much pressure on them while sewing, they can damage the fabric.

Titanium-plated needle

Titanium has been used to make these needles for many years. The material is very light and very resistant to corrosion, but it is also very expensive.

Like silver needles, they can be sterilized and won't discolor or corrode like nickel-plated needles. To prevent the needle from bending, you should make sure it rests perfectly straight on the shaft.

Titanium needles are more expensive than gold or silver needles, but they don't bend easily if you pick the wrong one, and they're easier to clean than other metals.

I love these needles and use them to embroider large projects.

How to choose the best needle for a project?

In order to choose the best needle for your project, you only need to consider 3 key factors.

Materials: There are different types of materials, which vary in quality and hardness. While some require more care and some are easier to maintain, needles made of steel, gold or titanium will not bend easily and will retain their shape over time. If you need something that will hold its shape, you should choose needles made of these materials.

Thread: Embroidery needles come in different diameters, so it's important to choose the right needle for your thread. Generally, the larger the needle tip, the faster and easier it is to move it through the fabric. However, if your needles are too large, it will leave noticeable holes in the pins, and they may be too wide or too narrow. So keep in mind that your needle should fit precisely into the eye of whatever shuttle you are using.

Needle Sizes: Needles come in different sizes and they can be used to sew different stitches on fabrics. The size of the needle should match the size of the thread you will be using. For example, if you want to use a 30 gauge needle with thick thread, you should choose the same size needle.

Embroidery Needle Brand

Here are the best brands of embroidery needles. Check them out, and if you're a sewer, it might also help you to check out our guide to the best sewing machine brands.

Organ Embroidery Needle

There is less thread pressure and stretch on the organ embroidery needle because it is too large for the eyes. Metal thread can also be used for heavier top sutures, and needle threading is easier.

This is the 15×1 embroidered and decorative stitched version. Higher quality materials extend the life of the garment.

Knitwear can be sewn with a ballpoint needle; the rounded tip allows the needle to pass between the threads of the fabric while separating them.

Taconi Co. Class Embroidery Needle

These are specially designed and manufactured to meet the demands of today's machine embroidery and creative fabrics.

This new needle is designed for durability, ease of use and superior performance for a wide variety of fabrics, threads, designs and technologies.

The eye of the needle is larger than a standard needle. This makes threading easier even for inexperienced sewers. For wire, this needle has larger eyes. The cutting edge is also longer, so you won't damage the fabric under the thread when working with decorative stitches or moving your hands back to stitch.

It is made of high-quality stainless steel and is heat-treated to create friction against the fabric during the stitching process for maximum strength, durability and abrasion resistance.

Euro Notions Embroidery Machine Needles

Euro Nations are made of high-quality stainless steel and are heat treated for maximum strength, durability and resistance to wear.

The eye of the needle is also XL shoulder providing a fuller cut for the purpose of attaching metallic threads for the purpose of decorative stitching.

The tail is also longer than standard needles, which allows easy movement back to make a new stitch in position

The needle is designed for durability, ease of use, and superior performance on a wide range of fabrics, threads, designs and techniques.

Schmetz assorted embroidery sewing machine needles

Schmetz needles are made from only the finest quality materials and they have a patented crimper that makes blind stitch insertion and removal easier.

They are not made to exceed minimum tensile or yield strength but to meet the requirements of their intended use.

“Schmetz design needle tips prevent accidental damage and ensure smooth stitching, no matter what fabric is being used.”

They have a large, round tip of stainless steel that has been designed to allow even less experienced stitchers to use these needles without ruining the fabric being sewn.

Their oversized eyes mean that they can be used with all types of thread.

StabilStitch Embroidery Needles

The StabilStitch needle is specifically developed to be used with stabilizer fabrics made of chrome. The needle has a longer than normal shaft length to help keep the needle in position while working on the embroidery project.

The eye of this needle is also quite large which makes it easier for you to thread both thick and thin threads through it.

The Beadsmith Bead Embroidery Needles

The Beadsmith needle is specifically designed to help you get the best results when working with beads on your embroidery machine. The eye of this needle is very large and it is made of high-quality stainless steel which means that it will not bend or break over time.

The Beadsmith Needle could be used by even beginner stitchers because it has a large, easy-to-thread eye and long, thin shaft for maneuverability.

“The needle nose will roll over the thread after piercing the fabric to avoid producing a knot in the beadwork.”

It has a medium ball point that is just perfect for both seed beads, general purpose and craft beads work, even larger beads could be used with this needle made of steel.