Double-ended needles

Has anyone tried those double-ended needles? I saw them in JoAnn Fabrics. They had a point at both ends and I think the eye was in the middle. They were longer than a normal needle. The package says they make stitching faster (always a good thing!) but I am not sure how that works. You wouldn't have to turn the needle around, it's true, but you'd still have to move your stitching hand from the top to the underside and back, unless you get more use out of your left hand than I do. I would love to hear from anyone who knows about them.

MJ,

I ABSOLUTELY LOVE the double ended needles and refuse to stitch w/out them. The trick is to get the needles as large as you can use for the size of fabric on which you are stitching. I have found the thinner ones quite easy to break.

My trouble is that they are not readily available where I live. HL no longer carries them, and the folks at JAs just look at me when I ask for them. I don't get out much due to being so ill; thus, my shopping time is limited. I have run out of a source for them. When I use the last one of them, I will not stitch until I can find more.

I have taught many little girls and grown women to stitch. I think they each caught on so quickly partially because of the double ended needle. Many times the turning of the needle confuses students esp. the little ones.

Sounds good, think I'll give them a bash... why not?

Well, I have indeed now gotten some double-ended needles from my very favourite supplier (Sewandso) and I must say that they look pretty nifty. However, very thin in the middle where the eye is- the instructions say to always hold close to but not on the eye, must remember that. The only trouble now is that I still don't have a stand so I still pretty much have to use the stab method and I think this means that I don't really get the full benefit of the double-sided needles because my left hand is tied up holding my hoop! Really really must get that stand...

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Originally posted by MJ
Has anyone tried those double-ended needles?

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I often use petite needles as though they are double-pointed, pushing them back up eye first when using doubled-thread, particularly with solid background areas. I'd eagerly purchased a set from at a Joann's Superstore.

I normally use a #28 needle and the finest double-point needle is a #26, a bit coarse for my preferred fabrics.

The darn double pointed needles are twice as long as a regular needle! It'd make sense to me for them to be the same length as a regular needle, which is about twice as long as a petite. These things are over 3x as long as my favorite needles.

I took wire cutters and an file and emery paper and shortened a #26 double-pointed needle to the length of a regular #26 needle. For #26 applications, I find it works very, very well.

Alas, I set it aside in a needlebook for the next time I'll need a #26 needle.

Hibrida

Hi there, Hibrida...

I, too, sometimes use the petite needles as though they were double-pointed, usually at the end of a thread when there are just a few stitches left... I hate to start a new thread for a stitch or two when I *know* there's more than enough thread to finish but the needle won't turn around. And that's why I prefer petite needles to begin with -- shorter turn around at the end means an extra stitch or two.

I gather 'petit' needles are shorter? How short are they, and I don't remember seeing them at Michael's. Is there a company that makes them, and I could order some from?

Nancy

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Originally posted by stitcherfe
I gather 'petit' needles are shorter? How short are they, and I don't remember seeing them at Michael's. Is there a company that makes them, and I could order some from?

Nancy

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Yes, they're shorter, and finer. I'm not sure where I got mine, though. If you find out before I do, let me know? (I want to get some more.)

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Originally posted by stitcherfe
I gather 'petit' needles are shorter? How short are they, and I don't remember seeing them at Michael's.

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Regular needles are 1-5/32" long.
Petites are 1" long.

Michael's and Joann's and Wal-Mart, etc., don't stock petites or #28's for that matter. I drive over to Elegant Stitch in Modesto California for mine. On-line that's elegantstitch.com .

All of the following refers to John James needles.
ES has the regular ones in bulk, but only for walk-in customers. I get 3-6 dozen regular JJ bulk #28 each trip (a few times each year). The petites cost a LOT more. They're available as "carded" with the standard finish, gold-plated and platinum-plated. The gold-plate and platinum-plate are a *blessing* for anyone with base-metal allergies.

I did a quick Internet search and what I think of as the Ritzy cross-stitch places often list the Petites as part of their regular stock.

Hibrida

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Originally posted by BarBaraPrz
Yes, they're shorter, and finer.

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My John James #28 petites are just the same diameter as my John James #28 regulars.

I have noticed that #28 regulars from other companies are fatter, so I think it's a sizing variation from one company to another, rather than from regular-to-petite.

Oh, and be careful with using the last bit of thread. Sometimes it's enough fuzzier to be noticed. Other times it may be slightly discolored from handling near the needle. I don't worry about it with #310, but I've had to go back and re-do isolated stitches in lighter shades. That's a pain in the anatomy.

Hibrida