Sewing with a twin needle: In this post, you'll find a detailed guide for decorative stitching with a twin needle. You can achieve exciting effects with it. Give it a try!
What is a twin needle?
A twin needle is a needle with two needle shafts. A thread is threaded into both needles. When sewing, the twin needle creates two parallel straight-stitch seams on the top of the fabric using the top threads. On the underside, the bobbin thread is guided in a zigzag pattern.
How does sewing with a twin needle work?
The special thing about sewing with a twin needle is that two top threads are pulled through the thread guide simultaneously and threaded into the twin needle. The bobbin thread is threaded as usual and connects the two parallel seams on the underside of the fabric with an elastic zigzag.
Twin seams are perfect for
- Hemming shirts, pants, or skirts
- Topstitching specific parts of your sewing projects
- Stitching decorative seams
- Flat-stitching seam allowances
- Working with jersey and other stretchy fabrics
That's why it's definitely worth learning more about sewing with a twin needle. In this post, I will explain step-by-step what you need to do to conjure up perfect twin seams. :)
But: Before you get started, please check your sewing machine's instruction manual. It should describe which presser foot and which decorative stitches are possible with your sewing machine.
On my Janome, it looks like this:
Right next to it, it usually states which presser foot must be used for these stitches.
This is important so the twin needle doesn't hit the foot and break.
Which types of fabric are suitable for sewing with a twin needle?
In principle, any fabric. If you want to embellish jersey with decorative stitches, the twin needle should, of course, be suitable for jersey as well. You will therefore need a stretch twin needle*. It is equipped with a ball point and will not destroy the fine knit of the jersey fabric.
Recommended reading: Sewing jersey with a sewing machine
There are twin needles for different fabrics, for example, for denim too.
This decorative stitch method is also suitable for reinforced or padded fabrics, as well as leather, faux leather, and all types of woven cotton.
If you want to dress up soft, flowing fabrics like silk, viscose, or cupro with decorative seams, you should definitely embroider a scrap of the fabric first. In any case, I would place embroidery stabilizer* underneath.
Embroidery stabilizer stabilizes the fabric and prevents the seams from sinking. You can also use it for jersey and cotton.
Which thread tension for the twin needle?
Not every thread tension is suitable for every fabric. When many stitches lie close together, for example with buttonholes or a satin stitch, it is good to loosen the thread tension a little.
The same also applies to seams with a twin needle.
Test on a scrap piece to see which stitch looks best with which thread tension.
Then you won't experience any unpleasant surprises when things get serious. :)
Are there twin needles specifically for jersey or cotton?
Most twin needles for cotton or woven fabrics are not specifically labeled as such.
There are, for example, twin needles for jeans or stretch fabrics.
Twin needles that are not assigned to a fabric type are universal twin needles.
Schmetz offers a practical 4-piece set*, which lasts me forever (unless I accidentally choose the wrong foot for the right twin needle again: That's when the needle likes to break!) ?
So I have the right needle ready for all fabric types...
Twin needles for jeans, for example, are great if you want to shorten jeans and "fake" the felled seam or hem seam... ;)
Embroidering jersey with the twin needle
For jersey, I recommend stabilizing the fabric with iron-on embroidery stabilizer*. The stabilizer can be easily peeled off afterward.
What do you need for sewing with the twin needle?
- the right presser foot (a zigzag foot is perfect)
- twin needle* (I used a 4 mm spacing)
- Colorful thread (I embroidered with variegated thread from Madeira and my preferred Gütermann all-purpose thread*; the Madeira thread* creates an additional beautiful effect because it has an interesting color gradient)
- Cotton or jersey fabric for embroidery (I recommend practicing on cotton fabric first!)
-
Iron-on embroidery stabilizer* or tear-away* (but you only need this if you want to embroider non-reinforced fabric!)
What needle size should the twin needle have?
That depends entirely on the fabric you want to embroider. For normal-thickness fabrics like cotton + stabilizer, 75 - 90 is sufficient. For leather, it should be a correspondingly stronger needle. I have had good experiences with the twin needles from Schmetz* and Prym*.
Instructions: Sewing with the twin needle
- Once you are well informed, you can start preparing your sewing machine
- Depending on the pattern you want to embroider, you will need a twin needle with more or less spacing.
- I used 4.0. With that, some of the embroidered seams overlapped. If you don't like that, choose a wider spacing, for example, a twin needle with 6 millimeter* spacing.
- Now it gets serious: Loosen the screw and remove the needle
- Now the twin needle is inserted and the screw tightened again.
Threading for the twin needle
- One of the threads you want to embroider with goes on the normal spool pin.
- The small square opening on the bottom right is intended for the second spool of thread.
- Every sewing machine is constructed a little differently.
- However, most come with a second spool pin for the twin needle.
- On my Janome, it looks like this:
Now you can thread the twin needle
- For this, both threads are placed together and simultaneously into the thread guide.
- Just pretend you are threading a completely normal thread.
- When you reach the needle, untangle the threads so they lie nicely side-by-side.
- Then you can thread them.
- If your sewing machine has an automatic needle threader: It does not work with a twin needle. Threading must be done by hand.
A small tip for threading: Lightly coat your finger with lip balm, pull the threads through, and cut them with sharp scissors. Then leave only a short piece of thread—perhaps 1 - 2 centimeters—free for threading. This way, threading works best for me.
- If you haven't already, replace the presser foot—the opening in the presser foot should match the width of the twin needle
- The zigzag foot is almost always the right choice
- Finally, place both threads through the thread guide in the presser foot (that is the opening in the middle) toward the back.
- Before you embellish your first serious sewing project with decorative seams, you should try out a few of the intended decorative stitches. Perhaps also in different colors.
- The twin needles give the seams surprising effects. With a sample swatch, you will then know exactly which stitch fits well.
- Note: Not every machine likes every thread. Here, too, you should sew a sample. It is very annoying when the thread breaks in the middle of a sewing project because then a gap appears in the decorative seam, which usually cannot be fixed 100%, unless you rip out the entire seam. Which is no fun at all with twin decorative seams! ;)
- And after a bit of experimenting, the first sewing project with decorative seams can be tackled.
- I used a cotton fabric backed with cotton batting.
- I pre-marked the lines I wanted to embroider with a Frixion pen.
- The markings can be easily ironed away afterwards.
By the way: Instead of using a fabric marker for the lines, you can also use a seam guide for perfectly even spacing.
Problem: Threads tangle and break when sewing with a twin needle!
Even if you are doing everything right, this can still happen when sewing with a twin needle. Why does it happen? Usually, it's because the threads, which are fed in the same direction through the thread tensioner, get tangled with each other.
If this happens with your sewing machine, here is my ultimate tip: Let the two thread spools unwind in opposite directions:
Then, pull both threads together through the thread guide and thread them as usual.
And this is how my twin needle decor looks
Want to know what I made with it? Cute shabby-style potholders - complete with a detailed sewing tutorial, of course!
Conclusion: Sewing decorative seams with a twin needle
Who would have thought? Sewing with a twin needle is child's play if you follow a few simple tips. From now on, you don't have to fear hemming shirts or skirts. Twin needle seams look great and are truly created in no time.
Happy simple twin needeling,
your Sabine
PS: Any questions? Leave them in the comments!
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