Needle sizes to use for piecing and quilting
 

My repairman has told me to use Schmetz needles, but I'd like to know what size to use AND I'd like to know where to get them in 10 packs because they are half as expensive that way.

A woman who was clerking at a quilt shop told me she always uses 120/?? for piecing and a 70/?? for quiltng. Is a smaller # a larger needle? And what about the "green dot" quilting needles? I am so confused!

What do you use for piecing? .....for quilting? and do you use the ones with green dots? Is the Universal style the best (it has a slight rounding of the the end of the needle)?

AND do you have a place you can order a pack of 10, all of one size, by mail for about the price of a normal 5 pack? I saw such the other day and I have spent hours trying to find that site again w/o avail.

I hope some of you really experienced quilters will help me out here.

I am still also struggling with gaining strong and specific knowledge about what size/type needle to use when - b...ut as to the best place to purchase......I buy pretty much only Schmetz needles for all of my sewing/quilting/embroidery and always buy them from either Hancocks or Joanne's when they have their 50 - 60% off notions sale, or when I have a 50% off coupon. I always have a very generous supply of them on hand that way. Good luck in you" quest for "needle knowledge".

I use an 80/12 sharp for piecing and a 100/16 or a topstitch needle for quilting. I don't know where you can buy a pack of 10, sorry. I get mine at Hancock's or JoAnns.

Any quilt police, around? No? Okay, then I buy my Schmetz needles at WalMart and use either 80/12 or 90/14. My machines don't seem any pickier about it, than I am. 80/12 is a bit thinner than 90/14.

Someone on the forum gave us a link to the Schmetz web site for a guide for needles. It's really helpful. The site is http://www.schmetz.com. Good luck!

I just priced 100 Schmetz needles size 90/14 for $32.95 on Ebay. I consider that a good price.

This is another informative site:

http://sewing.about.com/od/sewingmac...Sizes.--94.htm

Sewing machine needles:

The larger the number, the thicker the shaft of the needle.

For piecing ordinary quilting cottons, I use a 70 or 80 Schmetz needle, so far, I haven't noticed a major difference if I'm using a ballpoint, universal, or regular needle.

Hand sewing needles:

The larger the number, the needle is slimmer and shorter (for a given style/type of needle)

Mostly you should match your needle to your thread and the type of fabric you're sewing. Since I mostly sew cottons I use a 75/11 quilting needle for piecing. I generally use either Aurifil or Prescencia threads to piece with. For quilting I use a wider variety of threads so I use more sizes of needles. For most quilting I use either 80/12 or 90/14 topstitch needles. The topstitch needles have a larger eye and work better with the heavier threads.

For cotton fabrics the sharp needles work best. For knits you'll need the ball point needles. You're supposed to be able to use universal needles on either type of fabric but I've found they just don't work all that great for either one.

I had forgotten about the 75/11 needles.

There are all sorts of charts to help select compatible threads and needles to go with certain types of fabrics.

I've had 2 different Brother machines and the Schmetz from Walmart fit both of them. No idea about gage or anything like that. I use the ones with the smaller needles for piecing and the larger ones for quilting.

Can you tell I'm not with the Quilt Police, lol