Needles are a personal thing, can you see to thread it, can you comfortably hold it, will it fit the threads you are using through the eye, and can you easily pull it through your fabric? The needle you end up using may surprise you!
These are some of my most used needles for stitching projects:
- Beading Needles Sizes 10-12 (long, slender and with a small eye that would fit maybe two strands of thread maximum. Intended for stitching on beads, sequins or purl wires.)
- Tapestry Needles Sizes 18-24 (fatter needles with a large eye, ideal for stitching with thicker tapisserie yarns or multiple strands of thread. May be more difficult to pull through a tightly woven fabric.)
- Embroidery (Crewel) Needles Size 3-9 (smaller than tapestry needles but still fairly wide and with a large eye. Useful for using multiple strands of stranded cotton.)
- Embroidery (Crewel) Needles Size 5-10 (finer again but still with fairly wide eyes, a great all rounder if you don't like to use tiny needles.)
The bigger the needle size the finer the needle is. Finding the right one for you can take a while - if you would like to learn more about needles, John James (not affiliated) has a brilliant downloadable needle guide which is linked for your personal use.
