Oh oh - I think the lightbulb just went off in my head. The quilting needles I am using are "self-threading". They have a triangular head with the wide end at the very top of the needle. It has a small slit so you just have to pull the thread down from the top to get it into the eye. Definitely GOT TO be the needle. I am going to JoAnn's tonight and replacing them !! Do you have any suggestions for coaxing the batting back into the sandwich other than removing all the stitching (Please!!)?