Most put a new needle in when they start a new project. I admit I don't always...AND I often forget what size is already inserted. But you can remove the needle and find the brand and size on the shaft. I use size 14 or denim needle for jeans.

Oh my! Not a new needle once every two years? My projects have included making four little "snap bags" (the ones that use an old measuring tape for the closure) and two other little bags for my classroom. Would that necessitate a new needle? And, what happens if a needle is old?

I sew over the pins ... so I replace needles whenever one breaks. :-)

@merrygardener ... if the needle gets dull, you start skipping stitches and leaving big holes in the fabric. If it gets bent or the tip breaks a tiny bit off, you can leave snags in the fabric.

Needles are expensive! I change mine when they start skipping stitches. I use different sizes for different projects, ball point for knits, but I reuse needles as long as they are sharp. Depending of the fabric, that can be a long time!. One of the best tricks my mother taught me was to put a tiny drop of red nail polish on the front of number 14 needles so it was easy to tell them from the 9 and 11 needles, and to dab polish on the tiny slit you put the thread tail in on every new spool of thread. Now I use a permanent marker instead of polish.

Thanks, all! Now I want to go peek at both what size is in the machine and what I have in the sewing box. The very, very small sewing box!

Needles are suggested to be replaced for every project, but I think it's the rare sewer who does that. However, I do replace mine (other than when they break) every 2-3 sewing sessions. While not super cheap, I buy my Schmetz by the 100 pack. They end up costing less than 25 cents (US) for each needle. If your machine gets along well with Organ needles they are even less expensive.

If you start to hear 'thumping' as your needle goes in and out, or if you see your fabric rising as the needle raises - flagging - it's really beyond time to change your needle.

I discard when the needle becomes worn/damaged. If you run your finger gently over the needle, you can feel if it has any burrs; needles should be smooth & straight, ideally. I use size 16 for regular denim, thinking 14 would be for lighter weight denims. You can buy 'denim' heavy duty needles. There are also ballpoint needles for stitching knits. Also, thread should be appropriate for the type of needle you're using...

All About Needles

Merry gardner, I make those little "click" bags all the time. Then I give them away to nice people I meet! A friendly cashier, someome I meet who is struggling, the ladies at the post office, etc.

Even sent some to Budster up in Canada! I hope her postman survived her dancing round the mail box waiting for her package!

Made 90 of them for nieces baby shower. So much fun to make!

Kathy G in MI

This is old, but it has some good information.

I ordered some new needles yesterday, and I bought Singer needles because they are color coded. I see now that I could color code my own needles with nail polish - I never thought of that, but it is a great idea. Now I guess I'll have to buy some red nail polish - all I have is green, turquoise, purple, and yellow, plus a gold metallic, but I don't think that would show up as well. I used to have black, but I cannot find it.

I've had to change needles frequently when sewing Sunbrella fabric.

I have regular, leather, and ball-point needles. I'm not sure what the difference is with regard to knit vs stretch, unless it is needle size. I've been using regular jersey ball-point needles to sew both knits/jersey and Lycra - plus elastic.

Most of my needles are Schmetz, and it is next to impossible to read the needle size engraved on the needles. I've been taking close-up photos of the needles on my phone and then zooming in to try to read the numbers, but it is still difficult. Who ever thought that this was a good idea?