How To Store Embroidery Needles – Helpful Tips And Tricks

There’s often not much thought that goes into how you should store your embroidery needles…they are small, relatively inexpensive, and we’ve all lost one or two before. (yikes!) Here are a few tips and product recommendations that will help your needles last longer and keep your collection neat and organized.

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How To Store Embroidery Needles

Leave New Needles In The Packaging

In order to keep track of needles that are brand new, I tend to keep them in the pack in a drawer until I need to use one. This makes it easier to sort different needle sizes and there is less clutter in my pin cushion.

Pin Cushion

For the rest of the needles I have already started to use, I place them in a pin cushion. It’s helpful to have one with a needle sharpener if at all possible, because this will prolong the use of the needle.

I generally like to group the different sizes together on the pin cushion so it’s easier to find a larger or smaller needle. You could be even more precise about the way your organize needle sizes by labelling different areas of your pin cushion or creating one that includes a needle sorting chart.

You can also make your own pin cushion with emery, which is a natural needle sharpener.

Needle Storage For Travel

Needle Case Or Tin

When you’re traveling, you’ll want to have a more secure way to store your needles. Needle cases are a great option. You can find wood or tin ones, some of which contain a magnet in them to keep the needles from falling out. The magnet is a game-changer, especially if you’re embroidering in a car!

Needle Book

Another easy way to store them is in a needle book. These are usually made of fabric or felt, which makes it easy to wedge the needles into the fabric for safekeeping. This also allows you to organize them in a more intentional way. If you want to sort and organize them by needle size and type, you can do so on different pages of the needle book or you could even embroider labels onto the felt.

These little books are so handy and also really easy to make. Learn how to make your own felt needle book.

Needle Accessories

Needle Minders

For projects you’re actively working on, a needle minder comes in handy. This is a magnetic tool that you can place on top of the fabric so you can place your needles on it while you aren’t using it.

Not only will this prevent you from losing needles, but it also makes it easier to have multiple colors threaded at once which can streamline your embroidery process.

I hope this gave you some approachable and helpful ideas! If you’re looking for even more organizational posts, check out this one for storing embroidery floss or this one for organizing your fabric stash.

FAQs

How Long Does An Embroidery Needle Last?

Embroidery needles can last for multiple projects if you are purchasing high quality ones. They can be sharpened as needed and stored in a needle tin or pin cushion. If the needle becomes bent, rusted, or it feels hard to pierce through the fabric, it’s time to replace.

What’s The Easiest Way To Organize Embroidery Needles By Size?

The easiest way to keep track of different sizes of embroidery needles once you have opened the packaging is by labeling a pin cushion or needle book. Keeping the needles on separate pages or areas will allow you to more easily distinguish between them.