What Would We Do Without Needles?

by Steffani McChesney

Think about it. What would we do if we didn’t have needles? We sure wouldn’t be quilting. Seems strange that a tiny piece of metal is all that makes our beloved pastime possible. Ever wonder how those little bitty #12 betweens we use so diligently in our hand quilting to get 12 stitches to the inch are made?

Needles are fascinating in that they are still basically made by hand with the help of a few powered stamping tools in only five factories worldwide. The finest needles are still made in Great Britain. The other needle factories are located in China and India, probably due to the cheap labor. It doesn’t really matter what the brand name is on the package. The needles we use all come from these few manufacturers.

The best needles are made from high quality Sheffield steel in Great Britain. A five-gauge wire is pulled from a reel and cut into the length of two needles. The wire is then pointed on both ends and stamped in the middle with two eyes. At this point the two needles are snapped apart and the waste metal around the eyes is removed by hand.

Now the needles must be tempered by heat since they are still only soft, bendable wire up to this point. The needles are then scoured to clean them and polish the surface to accept plating. Most needles are nickel-plated. A few are plated with gold or platinum. This expensive process doesn’t mean that the needles are any better for quilting unless the user has a nickel allergy, which would justify the extra expense for the platinum or gold needles.

Master quilters advise using a quilting needle for about five or six hours. Personally, I am not happy until my needle, either appliqué or quilting, is bent and has become comfortable in my hand. I use that puppy until until I either wear off all the plating or it breaks. Good thing I wear glasses because it always pops up and hits me in the face. Hummm, maybe I should start changing my needles more often. Who knows? Maybe I will have an attack of vanity and change to contact lenses. Then where would I be?