Milliner's needles are like sharps, but longer. Are there needles that are like tapestry needles, but longer?
Context:
Once in a great while I'm given an hour's access to a child who is waiting for a van to take him home after some event. I use that time to introduce the child to running stitch.
A beginner's running stitch looks a lot nicer if you whip it. During my last lesson, I happened to have a tapestry needle handy, and discovered that it is much easier for a child to whip stitches with a tapestry needle than to push his crewel needle through eye first.
So I went to the quilt shop and bought a packet of their finest tapestry needles -- fine, because beginners' stitches are very irregular, and some of them are very small. But the fine needles are a tad short for a child to handle.
So what do I ask for to get long blunt-pointed needles?
Look at plastic canvas needles -- they are usually made of heavy plastic and are fairly fat and certainly blunt. These would be ideal for teaching a young child with small hands the rudiments of needlework. You'd need something with fairly large holes to accommodate the needle and you'd have to thread the needle with either crewel fiber or 6 strands of floss. I've used this when showing adults the rudiments and it's always worked well to help them actually stitch AND visualize what they are doing. CiaoMeow >^;;^<
PAX, Tia Mary >^;;^< (RCTQ Queen of Kitties) Angels can't show their wings on earth but nothing was ever said about their whiskers! Visit my Photo albums at
I have two steel needles of this description, and recently used the larger one to thread cord elastic into the knees of my new knickerbockers. Unfortunately, I no longer remember where I bought them. Probably in a fabric shop near a state capital. These needles are so coarse that I attach them to my needle holder by means of coil-less safety pins through the eyes. (Coil-less safety pins are useful gadgets, and can be obtained through knitter's supply houses, but are somewhat overpriced.)
(My needle holder is an assortment of wool scraps pinned to a curtain in the sewing room, or pinned to needle packets that are pinned to the curtain.)
I once made little squares of rug canvas, folding hems into them and then whipping the doubled threads with sewing thread to make a "selvage" all around. I think I raveled out the threads that didn't pass through the square proper, to avoid quadruple-thick corners, but I'm not sure. These could be used to teach children, and the child would have a coaster when he was finished, but I don't think I ever had an opportunity to use them. Wool yarn would be easiest to handle, and make the best coaster.
In my medallion-making lessons, I supply #7 crewel needles, the coarsest that my local fabric shop stocks, and keep a few darning needles in case of first-graders. At the last event, an inspired mother grabbed a couple of permanent markers that I'd brought for signing the paper glued to the back, and had her toddler color the design. Then I ran the gathering thread for him; it's certainly lucky that a return student was doing most of the teaching on the needle side of the table!
No, he never got his hands on a needle, but I got his attention, he learned that sewing is fun, and he might be back next year.
I sure hope that I get another baby-sitting gig this December.
I remember my first ever handling a needle. It was in the 5yo class in school, when the teacher handed out rectangles of net plus threaded needles. We had to double over the net then sew it together (in one hole, out the next) for two and a half sides, after which teacher would fill the resulting bag with lavender and we stitched up the remaining section. The resulting sachets were sold at the church bazaar, and we were so proud of our contributions.
According to sites turned up by Google, when a fly-tier says "bodkin", he means a very fine stiletto.
I'll wager that fly-tiers have *something*, though, and we don't call my home town "Lake City" for nothing. (three different lakes inside the city limits; we do have bait shops) I'll report back if I find anything interesting. I already know that lacemakers use hackle pliers a lot; I can't think of a use for them in embroidery.
The needles you're describing are probably the ones that knitters use to sew the seams on knitted objects. They should be available in any store that sells knitting yarn.
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