Needle help with making rag quilts
 

I have been sewing for about 2 yrs now i wouldnt call me good or anything but i know a good bit about sewing, but everytime i come around to making a rag quilt and get to the point of putting all the rows together and get to the junction where all 4 layers meet together my needle always breaks or bends. What am I doing wrong I was told to use jean needles for this so i went and bought some but i havent tried them out yet was in the process of moving right when i purchased them so now i have a rag quilt project thats actually using old jeans. Help me out with this. Have I gotten the right needles this time or is it something else causing my needles to break or bend. thanks in advance sheena

you need a really big needle and slow speed to sew through that thick a seam. Try a quilting needle, maybe size 90. And be sure you're not pushing or pulling the fabric which could cause the needle to bend (only a minute amount) and hit the throat plate instead of going through the hole to pick up the bobbin thread.

I'm the rag quilt queen around here and I have never had problems with needles breaking. Key is to make sure you don't pull your fabric through and allow it to go through by itself. I don't use any special needles and to be honest have no clue as to what size needle I have on my machine. Only thing I know for sure is that they are Titanium type needles. That may make a difference don't know.

I cut a square out of each block corner the size of the seam before sewing. It eliminates all the bulk at the corners.

Thanks for the tip, I will try it. I use a big needle, either a denim or a large size regular needle. I use which ever I have. You have to go slow and don't pull the fabric or push it through. I also have started using a basting stitch above my stitching line to baste down the seam allowances before I sew the rows together. I set a card table up beside me to hold the weight of the quilt.

are you using a walking foot. Maybe try a titanium topstiching needle, supposedly those can be used for almost anything. At least that is what superior claims. Also it can also be your machine, some machines are better at going through multiple layers. The cheaper machines have a harder time especially if not using a walking foot. The higher end machines can go through many layers without the aid of a walking foot