Needles

[Ruthi]

I started with ordinary nickel plated needles and graduated to gold plated a few years ago (probably suggested to me here!).

I'm just running out of my bulk purchase of needles from the cross stitch needle shop, and to be honest I haven't been entirely happy with them. The gold wears off in no time, and the inside of the eyes seems a bit rough to me.

I have read about Bohin needles. Are they worth the price (or trouble if I order from the USA)?

[MaggieM1750]

Bohin is a French company- I would think you could find a UK or an EU supplier.
John James are another needle I've used- and I think those are made in England.

[Allyn]

I started with ordinary nickel plated needles and graduated to gold plated a few years ago (probably suggested to me here!).

I'm just running out of my bulk purchase of needles from the cross stitch needle shop, and to be honest I haven't been entirely happy with them. The gold wears off in no time, and the inside of the eyes seems a bit rough to me.

I have read about Bohin needles. Are they worth the price (or trouble if I order from the USA)?

I was a loyal John James gold needle user for decades. Not all gold needles are created equal. The better quality needles are better than any old gold needle, that's for sure. You didn't mention what brand of gold needle you're using. Even ones from makers with a name that you'd ordinarily trust can be crappy (Anchor gold needles aren't very good, for example.)

That being said, I recently found a bunch of 25-packs of JJ golds that got tucked away and forgotten about. They must have been in there from the 90s and they seem to be much nicer than the ones that I've been getting here recently. Same brand and gold, but the old ones seem to last longer and the eyes don't fray the thread like the new ones do. It seems like the quality of my trusty old JJ gold needles isn't what it used to be, so I went on an expedition to try some different needles.

I got a bulk pack of Bohins (from anitalittlestitches.com) and some Piecemakers to try. I haven't even opened the Piecemakers yet because I'm really liking the Bohins. The eyes are so smooth that the needle will fall off the thread if I'm not careful when I 'drop' the needle to let it unwind. Some folks feel like that's a negative, and I can see their point, but I really like that the eye is so smooth.

When I was stitching with the rough-eye needles, not only would they fray the thread, but one strand seemed to get trapped in the eye and the other strand would move more free. The result was that I was having to fiddle with most stitches to get even tension on both threads. The 'trapped' strand would be too tight and the 'loose' strand would be too loose and I'd have to fiddle with the strands individually to get them even. With the smooth-eye needles, the tension is even and stays even on all the stitches.

I do miss the glide of the gold needles through the fabric; but for now, I'm really liking the Bohins.

I know it looks like chaos, but it's a system that is working really well for me.

[gparr]

Bohin needles exclusively for me. Agree with everything Allyn says about them.
Gary

[Rose]

I know that others do not really care for the DMC needles but I really like them and have never had an issue with them other then the eye breaking on one package and lets face it you are going to get a bad package once in a while.

I have tried several gold needles over the years and none of those have held the gold plating worth a darn. Plus they squeak. When you run the needle through the fabric it makes a squeak noise that after a while gets kinda annoying.

[jocellogirl]

I'm a John James girl all the way. As Maggie says, they are made in England, just down the road from me in Redditch.

[Oriettait]

I started with ordinary nickel plated needles and graduated to gold plated a few years ago (probably suggested to me here!).

I'm just running out of my bulk purchase of needles from the cross stitch needle shop, and to be honest I haven't been entirely happy with them. The gold wears off in no time, and the inside of the eyes seems a bit rough to me.

I have read about Bohin needles. Are they worth the price (or trouble if I order from the USA)?

I think they are really good especially if you are looking for easy threading.
Amazon UK carry them if you are interested http://www.amazon.co.uk/s?ie=UTF8&field ... ch-type=ss

EDIT to add: I also found some Etsy seller that carry them and they appear to be cheaper than amazon.
http://www.etsy.com/it/search?q=bohin&o ... uage=en-US

I know it looks like chaos, but it's a system that is working really well for me.

Your chaos looks very organized to me Allyn

[Mrsadm]

I greatly prefer Piecemakers over the Bohins, so I guess we're all different! They are a US company and carried by many retailers online.

[Ruthi]

Well, I am in France this week, so took the opportunity to seek out some Bohin needles. They are 2 Euros here, as opposed to just under £10 on Amazon.co.uk!!!

I have bought myself two packets of 26's because that is the size I like to use on 28 count. Unfortunately, the lighting in my daughter's house is so awful that I never bring any stitching, so I won't be able to try them out till I get home.

If there is anyone in the UK keen to try these I can guarantee that I will find an excuse or three to go to another shop or two, so just pm what you want and I'll see if I can pick them up. There are also French mail order companies we could use that post to the UK.

[wendywombat]

I don't need needles....but isn't the WEATHER JUST LOVELY this week!

Now who ever 'needed' an excuse to go into a Needlecraft Shop????

[meganh]

as others hav said I'm JJ girl,I loike the way the gold glides through the fabric. I've never had a problem with the eyes, Also I haven't seen it mentioned but the gold is waaaayeasier for me to see while stitching (BONOUS) Hope all this helps in some small way
Happy stitching from NC

[Ruthi]

I know, Wendy. But then it always is when I come over. We set out to walk around a lake next to the Gave river, but unfortunately the super all-terrain buggy got a flat tyre so we had to make do with lunch at the lakeside restaurant.

I don't need any excuses, but my daughter (who was probably swapped at the hospital), doesn't understand at all, any more than she understands my love of dogs.

[wendywombat]

I know, Wendy. But then it always is when I come over. We set out to walk around a lake next to the Gave river, but unfortunately the super all-terrain buggy got a flat tyre so we had to make do with lunch at the lakeside restaurant.

I don't need any excuses, but my daughter (who was probably swapped at the hospital), doesn't understand at all, any more than she understands my love of dogs.

What a hardship...having lunch out!!

My daughter is the same....can't knit or stitch...but does make curtains and cushion covers. But she does love dogs ...and horses ...and snakes!!

[Ruthi]

I just thought I would report back on my Bohin needles. They are great - and the surface seems to last really well. So far it looks as new, and I would have worn through a couple of gold needles in the last week.

Now I just need more as I switch to leaving my needles in when parking. am trawling through the french websites, looking for one who will post to the UK.

[LadyGisburne]

I love Permin gold plated needles, they are not too expensive (I think around £8.50 for 20 of them). They come in a very handy little tube and last for a long time. In fact. I've yet to experience any kind of wearing off of the gold. I also have some gold plated needles from the cross sticher's guild. They are very good indeed but also a bit on the expensive side. I didn't try any of the very cheap ones that you can buy in bulk from Ebay yet but I don't think I will because I don't trust them to last long enough...