Thursday Tip // Sharpening needles and pins

Do you have this tomato pincushion? Ever wonder what the little strawberry is for?

The ever popular tomato pincushion is said to have its roots in the Victorian Era when homeowners would put a fresh tomato on their mantel to guarantee prosperity by repelling evil spirits. When tomatoes were out of season it is believed families would improvise with a red fabric covered ball filled with sawdust or sand which then became a place to store pins. Although this history can’t be officially verified, it is interesting to imagine where this little tomato originated.

Needles and pins are typically inexpensive and readily available nowadays but long ago they were expensive, precious objects that often had an honoured place in the home. For this reason, sharpening needles and pins used to be a more common practice as keeping these tools in peak shape was a necessity. 

These days we are quick to toss a needle or pin at the first sign of a struggle but if you want to give yours a little extra life then there are some things you can do to prolong their use. Sometimes needles will get a small knick or burr on them which can snag your fabric or cause skipped stitches. The little strawberry attached to the tomato pincushion is filled with emery powder and, similar to an emery board for filing your nails, the gently abrasive powder removes burrs from the tips of needles and/or pins. Some say you should push the needle or pin all the way through the strawberry in only one direction but I haven’t had any issues just gently sliding the tip in and out to sharpen. You can use this method for hand sewing needles as well.

Other methods for sharpening include fine grade sandpaper, sticking a needle repeatedly through tinfoil, polishing with toothpaste and the list goes on. I have not done extensive research on these other methods so I recommend you proceed with caution. Also an important note about sewing machine needles specifically. For universal needles with a sharp point you can probably use these sharpening methods (at your own discretion) but it isn’t a good idea to use these for other types of needles, especially ball point/jersey needles. Sharpening these inherently blunt needles could affect their intended shape and cause other problems with sewing. We recommend you test your sharpening method before proceeding and use abrasive methods only when absolutely necessary. Fortunately, needles aren’t terribly expensive (as they once were) so when in doubt, just toss in your sharps disposal and get yourself some new needles.