Ever looked at all the different sewing pins that are available in the shop? I mean there are ones with tiny metal heads and then there are ones with colourful plastic heads (ball point pins, plastic heads and glass heads). So many sewing pins to choose from!

Now if you are new to sewing you may not know which sewing pins to get. I have good news for you though. There are five different types of sewing pins and they are pretty straightforward to use. Glass, round plastic ball point, flat plastic, flat metal and T pins.

Personally I don’t like the metal flat head sewing pins. You can’t see them and they just irritate me when I try and pull them out. They are small and not worth struggling with in my opinion. And very boring. I love to use the colourful head sewing pins. They’re easy to grab and pull out. And easy to find!

However I may feel about the flat head sewing pins, they do have their purpose. They work well for delicate fabrics like silk that can get dammaged easily. They can be ironed over. So can glass head pins. Plastic ones can’t.

The plastic ball point head round sewing pins actually work well on items such as wool or knit fabrics as their tips are slightly hollowed. If you worry about fraying a garment or leaving a hole in the fabric then you shouldn’t use these types of sewing pins on delicate fabrics. I do, but that’s me.

The glass head sewing pins are slightly stronger and more rigid than other pins. They are great for pinning heavy and thick fabric…… and extra layers! I’ve on many occasions broken and bent a sewing pin or two because I only use the ball point ones (plastic round colourful heads).

The plastic head sewing pins are wonderful for general things that needs pinning. They are also called general sewing pins but don’t always just get used for sewing. They can be used for anything. They are great to use when you need to pin a pattern you are designing on paper to make sure it works. That’s one good place to use the general sewing pins.

The other type of sewing pin that not everyone seamstress knows about is the T pin. It’s head is literally in the shape of a T and it’s used for upholstery when you need to pin a piece of fabric onto a couch for example.

With all this being said, I’ve been sewing for over twenty years and I’ve only used the round ball point head pins. Yes my silks have gotten marks from sewing pins but I’ve only ever used silk once, when I made my wedding dress and it was on the seams where its invisible. I’ve done upholstery and used the same sewing pins. I’ve sewn breastfeeding pillows for a clinic and used the same sewing pins. And lots of clothes. All using those same old ball point sewing pins. In fact, I don’t own any of the others. I have no need for them.

Here is a cool little idea I like to use. You could have a system in place for using sewing pins. You could use pearly head sewing pins at the top of your outfit to mark the top or front or back and you can use black plastic head sewing pins to mark the front of the garment and bottom. It does sometimes help working in color codes with sewing pins, especially when you don’t mark your patterns. Don’t follow my bad habits though! Mark those patterns and use a fair amount of sewing pins!

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