They’ve also found a new home in creative contemporary quilting where matching unique shapes is required. They are great for positioning stripe or plaid fabric pattern alignment prior to sewing in place. Perfect for securing hard to handle or slippery lining materials. This allows you to pin fabrics without lifting them. They have glass heads so they are iron safe.įork pins have two shafts connected by a turned up end. Sharp and thin, they are ideally suited for dress making applications where fine fabrics are being used. Marbled Glass Head Pins are a little shorter and finer than the quilting pins. They have glass heads so they can be ironed. Two sizes are available, fine and extra fine. Patchwork pins have very fine points for use on the most delicate fabrics like silks and satins. Clover quilting needles are available in two shaft sizes, fine for more delicate fabrics and regular for heavier fabrics. They are longer than many straight pins so they can penetrate several layers of fabric and stay in place. Quilting pins have a fine point and a smooth shaft to make them fabric friendly. The small 3/4″ size allows detailed work when many pins are required and space is limited. The sharp, tapered point prevents damage to your fabric. These little gems are perfect for applying appliqués, trims, beads, or sequins to your project. No 2506)– Same acute point but a little stronger and longer shaft for multiple layers of heavier fabrics. No 2505)– Thin shaft and acute point for fine fabrics like silk osatin. No 2510) – Very fine shaft and acute point for delicate fabrics.įine (Art. These pins come in three different diameters to provide strength without stressing your fabric.Įxtra fine (Art. The heads are not iron proof so keep them away from the heat.

You can also lay rulers flat on them when marking or cutting. It is especially well suited for pinning lace, eyelets or loose woven embellishments to fabric because the head will not slip through enlarged openings. That makes it both easy to see and manipulate. The defining feature is a large flat head. Taking the time to identify that pin is well worth it and will always help take you to your sewing happy place. For each of these applications there is a “best” straight pin design that will give us the best results. Over time several styles of pins have evolved to satisfy the specific demands all of these different applications. We use straight pins to hold patterns in place, bind fabric pieces, hold seams together, anchor trims, beads or other embellishments in place and even block knitted products. Dull, bent or corroded (really old) needles damage our fabric and test our patience. The extra-sharp category also exists for special needs. Needless to say it should be clean and sharp. Points – This is the business end of the pin. If you’re planning on ironing over your pins it’s a good idea to verify their heat resistance before using them. Each provides specific advantages so pick the one that best suits your needs. We have tiny metal heads, plastic heads, glass heads, and flat heads.

That’s the handle that allows us to effectively manipulate the pins. Pin heads – The pin heads are very important. For appliqué, on the other hand, we can (and should) get away with shorter pins. If we’re pinning several layers of fabric together as in quilting or pinning large seam allowances we’ll need to use longer pins. If our pins are buckling as we insert them though, it’s probably a sign that we need to go to a heavier shaft. Size – As with sewing machine needles, we should always use the finest needle possible to be the least intrusive with our fine fabrics. Here are a couple of things to keep in mind:

And because of that importance we need to make sure we always use best style and size needle for each unique application. In fact they are just as elemental to what we do as scissors and needles and threads. They’re necessary to almost everything we do in all genres of sewing. Yes, pins can be a “pain” but we really can’t do without them either. And when we do find that pin cushion we’ve been looking for, we see it’s loaded with an almost indecipherable array of pin types and sizes (and the search continues). You know, the one that’s hidden in that quilt top that we’re folding (but is now in our finger) or perhaps the one that we dropped earlier in the day and is now lodged in our favorite pair of socks (that we’re still wearing) or maybe the one we forget to remove and hit with our sewing machine needle (that breaks). What do we think of when the topic of straight pins comes to the fore? Usually we think of those sharp little devils that find us when we’re not looking for them.

Clover flat head pins