Kinds of Hand Embroidery Needles
A wide variety of needles is available for embroidery and cross stitching. Quality and size vary greatly, so try several different needles to find which one you are the most comfortable using. The most common needle in cross stitching is the embroidery or tapestry needle but other types include beading, chenille, quilting, and milliners needles. Each type has a specific use.
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Beading Needles
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Beading needles are for adding beads to an embroidery and are long and thin to accommodate the narrow openings of the beads.
Chinelle Needles
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Chenille needles, used for embroidery with ribbon, have a long eye and a sharp point.
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Double-eye Tapestry Needles
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Double-eye tapestry needles have two eyes and are used when embroidering with two different colored flosses. This way you can blend the colors.
Embroidery Needles
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Embroidery needles have a sharper tip, a smaller eye and a thinner body than a tapestry needle. They're used in cross stitch for French knots because the sharper needle better pierces the fabric than a tapestry needle.
Milliners Needles
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Milliners needles are longer needles with small round eyes and are used when doing French and Bullion knots.
Petite Tapestry Needles
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Petite tapestry needles are shorter than tapestry needles, making the needlework go faster since there is less needle to pull through.
Tapestry Needles
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Tapestry needles have a blunt point, which pushes aside needlepoint fabrics such as monk's cloth and moves easily through needlepoint canvases. The larger eye can accommodate several strands or thread or a thicker thread than other needles.
Needle Sizes
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In addition to coming in a variety of designs, embroidery needles come in a variety of sizes from short and thin to long and thick. When selecting your embroidery project, take a look at the selection of needles available to you to better complete your needlework.
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References
- Photo Credit aiguilles à coudre image by Danielle Bonardelle from Fotolia.com
